More than 400 fall ill after contaminated water near Pretoria

Residents in Tshwane, the area that includes South Africa’s capital, Pretoria, have been warned not to drink or cook with tap water after more than 400 people fell ill. Most of those affected are children under four, according to the BBC.

Officials said people sought treatment at local hospitals over a two-week period with stomach cramps and diarrhoea. No deaths have been reported, but tests found high levels of E. coli in the water.

In a joint statement on Monday, the departments of water and health said 408 cases had been detected between 7 and 18 October in about five townships. Laboratory tests indicated that people had been exposed to contaminated water from a local treatment facility supplying communities east of Pretoria.

Samples contained norovirus, campylobacter, shigella and other pathogens that can cause stomach cramps and diarrhoea, officials said. No cholera bacteria has been found in the latest cases.

Initial investigations found that local authorities had failed to warn residents about the contamination. The water has been declared unfit for human consumption, and residents have been told to use it only for flushing toilets. Tankers have been sent to provide clean drinking water.

Officials advised residents to discard previously stored water and disinfect containers with household bleach.

Tshwane has experienced several waterborne disease outbreaks in recent years. In 2023, a cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal, a township just outside Pretoria, killed 29 people and was linked to substandard water purification practices.

In 2025, officials confirmed 48 typhoid cases in the same area east of Pretoria. The source of that outbreak remains unclear.