Eight who travelled to Tanzania illegally isolated in Homa Bay

Eight people who went to Tanzania illegally to attend a burial were on Tuesday quarantined in Homa Bay amid concerns over clandestine movement on the porous border.

The locals include a boda boda rider who ferried some of the people back to the country from Tanzania.

The people were rounded up by health and security officers on Sunday afternoon after information about their travel to Tanzania was reported to authorities.

Deputy County Commissioner Joseph Maina said the locals failed to report to their chiefs that they had recently travelled to Tanzania.

“We got information that some Suba residents had travelled to Tanzania to bury their kin.

“They did not inform any government official about their travel,” he said.

Mr Maina said six family members were picked up by health surveillance officers from their home in Pudo village.

All of them will be tested for coronavirus, the official said.

Meanwhile, a section of Migori leaders have urged the government to deploy soldiers along the porous Kenyan-Tanzanian border.

Response teams in Migori have intensified testing for coronavirus in villages along the border after positive cases in the county rose to seven on Saturday.

Among those targeted are long distance truck drivers and pedestrians entering the county through the porous borders.

At least 15 truck drivers are tested daily at the Isebania border point. Drivers who test positive are sent back to Tanzania.

Migori County Health Executive Dr Isca Oluoch said focus had shifted to truck drivers and Tanzanian nationals crossing into the country after four cases were confirmed in the county on Saturday.