Mogadishu authorities have said about 500 people may have died of Coronavirus for the last two weeks, a toll disputing with the official record of the health ministry.
Speaking to the media, Somali capital city’s mayor Abdirahman Omar Filish said the city has been recoding the toll since mid last month.
The mayor stated that the local officials who dily visited cemetaries had recorded the number with daily estimated of over 20 people being buried in the city’s graveyards.
Omar said the city administration has been recording COVID-19 related deaths following a request from the Federal Government.
“We record between 19 and 49 deaths related to COVID-19 daily,” Omar said. “We have recorded at least 500 deaths since April 19 to date.”
Medics raise red-flag over COVID-19
Somali Medical officials have warned of a possible spike in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country over what it termed as unattended cases reported in various medical facilities.
The officials said lack of capacity to test and follow up cases could expose the country to further spread of the disease.
The medical practitioners called for robust follow-ups and public adherence to measures issued by the ministry of Health.
They also urged members of the public to use face masks while in public places.
Speaking to the UK based Guardian, Dr Mohamed Ali, a health officer who leads the Covid-19 response team at Mogadishu’s Martini hospital admitted that many deaths are simply not reported to authorities.
“We have a limited capacity to record all deaths. We are unable to reach every home. When a patient dies, relatives hire a private ambulance or a truck and they bury the body. People are reluctant to share the information and therefore we are missing numbers,” Ali said.
According to the Ministry of health, the country has so far recorded 601 cases of Coronavirus with death toll standing at 28.
