Bungoma nun arrested, locked down in quarantine

By , K24 Digital
On Thu, 2 Apr, 2020 14:38 | < 1 min read
Bungoma Health CEC, Dr Anthony Walela, said the nun -- on March 13 -- came into contact with a Siaya priest who tested positive for COVID-19. [PHOTO | COURTESY]
Bungoma Health CEC, Dr Anthony Walela, said the nun -- on March 13 -- came into contact with a Siaya priest who tested positive for COVID-19. [PHOTO | COURTESY]
Bungoma Health CEC, Dr Anthony Walela, said the nun -- on March 13 -- came into contact with a Siaya priest who tested positive for COVID-19. [PHOTO | COURTESY]

Police in Bungoma have arrested and placed under mandatory quarantine a middle-aged nun, who interacted with a Siaya priest who tested positive for coronavirus last week.

The nun is said to have refused to lock herself in isolation after interacting with the Siaya priest, who allegedly contracted the virus while on a trip to Rome, Italy. Several calls to have her self-quarantine fell on deaf ears, forcing police to arrest and place her under forced confinement.

Confirming the incident to K24 Digital, Bungoma County Health CEC, Dr Anthony Walela, said the nun came into contact with the priest on March 13, when he presided over a burial mass in Ugunja, Siaya, two days after arriving from Italy. The burial was that of the mother of a nun stationed in Siaya.

And upon returning to Bungoma, the nun was requested to self-isolate, but she reportedly refused, going ahead to interact with people as she used to prior to the suspected infection.

“When I was informed that the said-nurse had defied directives to self-quarantine for 14 days, I alerted police officers, who went to where she stayed and arrested her,” Walela told K24 Digital on Thursday, April 2.

The Health CEC said they are considering setting aside at least 20 schools in Bungoma, which would be used as isolation centres should COVID-19 numbers in Bungoma County rise exponentially.

Dr Walela said the county administration has embarked on fumigating all markets in Bungoma.