A Kano resident, Ibrahim Yusuf, has narrated how he lost five of his children within eight days to suspected diphtheria, as the disease continues to raise concern in the state
Yusuf, who lives in the Danbare area of Kano metropolis, said his ordeal began last week when his children developed fever.
He said he initially took them to Kabuga Primary Healthcare Centre, but as their conditions worsened, they were referred to the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH), the facility designated by the state government to manage diphtheria cases.
According to him, two of his children died on the same Monday, about 40 minutes apart.
“They told us it was diphtheria. They admitted them, but two of them d!ed the same day,” he said.
Yusuf said three other children subsequently developed similar symptoms and were also admitted to the IDH.
“On Tuesday night, another child died, while on Wednesday, two more also d!ed, bringing the total de.aths in my house to five within eight days,” he said.
Recounting the de.aths, he said one of the children died on Tuesday night and was buried the following morning, while another d!ed at about 10am on Wednesday and was buried at noon.
He said the third child d!ed at about 5pm on Wednesday and was buried at 8am the following day.
The grieving father identified the deceased as Sadiq, 13; Aisha, seven; Zainab, seven; Umar, six; and Aliyu, one year and six months old.
“They all !ied in quick succession,” he said.
Yusuf, who has 11 children, said the tragedy had left his family devastated.
He also claimed to have seen several corpses being taken away from the hospital, suggesting that the outbreak was affecting many families.
“Honestly, I saw many bodies being taken away. I cannot count them, but people are dying in the hospital almost every day. In our neighbourhood too, another man lost his child. There are many cases,” he said.
He appealed to the authorities to intensify efforts to contain the disease.
“We are calling on the government to stop this outbreak before it spreads further. Every day people are dying. Our plea is for them to act quickly,” he said.
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