Own Correspondent|Villagers from Gwanda South have raised an urgent SOS claiming that a strange malaria outbreak is wreaking havoc in the area leaving them believing that the malaria could be the deadly Coronavirus.

The villagers who spoke to ZimEye.com claim that just in the last week at least five people have succumbed to the strange disease which the local health centres insist to be malaria.

The villagers further claim that what raises their fears on Coronavirus are the symptoms that they see on all the people who have fallen ill to the alleged malaria.

“All the people who have been attacked by this disease have a very strong fever and are shivering and yet sweating at the same time,” said a villager in an anonymous tip off sent to ZimEye.com.

“The people also get a diarrhoea of a kind, lose appetite and complain of a sore throat which we have seen the media claim to be symptoms of the Coronavirus,” added the tip off.

The villagers also disclosed that the local health centres do not have a Coronavirus testing centre.

A senior opposition MDC official in Gwanda South confirmed the outbreak indicating that they been able to gather figures of affected persons from the District Medical Office.

“The office insists that the outbreak is a complicated malaria and have provided figures of the affected people so far,” said the MDC official who insisted on not being mentioned at this stage in fear of the new Coronavirus regulations.

“We are reliably informed that a total of 58 cases have been reported in the last two weeks and the figures we were provided with are as follows:
GPH- 2
Manama- 6
Nhwali- 11
Sengezane- 5
West Nicholson- 4
Selonga – 5
Kafusi – 5
Gungwe – 5
Ntalale – 3
Collen Bawn – 1
Buvuma – 11.
Total – 58,” the official revealed.

Officials in the Gwanda District Medical office would not immediately deny nor confirm the matter indicating that their bosses who were not available are the only ones authorised to speak to the press on the matter.

Malaria is however one of the leading public health challenges in Gwanda district. The district accounts for the second highest number of recorded malaria cases in Matabeleland South province according to Ministry of Health and Child Care statistics.

This story is still being developed as frantic efforts are being made to get an official comment from the Ministry of Health and Child Care in Harare.