By SIPOKAZI FOKAZI/iol.co.za

Cape Town – At least four children have died and hundreds more have been admitted to hospitals across the province as the notorious diarrhoea season gains momentum, which mostly affects children.

In Khayelitsha more than 800 children were treated for diarrhoea at City of Cape Town clinics during the week from February 7, while 150 children were admitted to provincial tertiary hospitals.

At the weekend, Red Cross Children’s Hospital admitted 28 children with gastroenteritis. The previous weekend they admitted 22 children.

Dr Ivan Bromfield, head of health in the city, said Khayelitsha remained the worst affected area with a number of moderate to severe diarrhoea cases being reported.

Of the 865 cases of diarrhoea recorded in Khayelitsha during the week from February 7, 14 percent were moderate and 3 percent involved severe dehydration.

While the regular diarrhoea season has not yet peaked – it is expected to do so next month – a substantial number of children have been admitted to hospitals for gastric-related conditions, according to Mark van der Heever, spokesman for the provincial Health Department.

At least 300 children have been admitted to Red Cross since January, with Tygerberg Hospital recording about 120 diarrhoea-related admissions during the same period.

Aside from those 420 hospital admissions, provincial clinics and hospitals in the metro region have also seen about 400 cases so far this year.

But Van der Heever said these numbers did not constitute an outbreak. The season was in fact quieter than the same period last year.

“About 30 percent fewer cases were admitted in January this year than in January 2010 and 2009. February is also down compared to last year so far,” he said.

To the medical fraternity, warm summer months are known as the diarrhoea season. Heat encourages bacteria to breed, leading to serious gastric illnesses.

In informal settlements, where there is poor sanitation, residents are particularly at risk of being affected by diarrhoea. The cases, which start around November, usually peak during February and March.

Van der Heever said other areas affected by gastric infections included Dunoon, Wallacedene, Langa, Nyanga, Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay, Delft and Browns Farm.

As part of creating awareness about the risks of falling ill, both the department and the city were conducting educational talks at clinics.

Bromfield said that as part of their diarrhoea intervention plan, and for investigation purposes, city authorities were visiting families where there were severe diarrhoea cases, including diarrhoea deaths.

Authorities were hopeful that the rotavirus vaccine, as part of the national immunisation programme, would help reduce the number of cases of diarrhoea and related deaths, as these were often caused by the rotavirus.

This photo captured by Robyn Hobson, sums up Hout Bay very well.

Firstly you can see that Hout Bay is @ the coast with the beuatiful mist that is rolling in.

The fact that there is a horse crossing on the main road, shows how the “mink and manure” set has some sway in town.

The horse meat for sale sign shows the discontent that some have for the horse owners (790Tv called the number and got a bizarre answer asking to leave a message).

If you also look very carefully you will see a graffiti tag from “elf”, showing that the youth want to and need to be heard.

Taken from iol.co.za:

Nearly 20 years ago, five-year-old Florencia Langenhoven left her Ravensmead home to play in the street. She never returned.

A few weeks later a neighbour, Aubrey Hendricks, admitted to snatching her and told her mother he had sold the fair-haired, green-eyed girl to a man in Grabouw for R25 000.

Hendricks was jailed for 10 years.

Florencia has not been seen since. She was last seen on December 5, 1993 in the street outside her home.

About an hour later Florencia’s mother, Cathy Langenhoven, noticed her daughter was no longer there.

Police spokesman Frederick van Wyk said an abduction docket was opened.

Hendricks, then 48 years old, was arrested and convicted of having snatched Florencia.

Van Wyk said Hendricks had admitted he abducted Florencia. He said he had given her to a man he identified only as Sipho. He was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment, which he served at the Helderberg Prison.

His information about Sipho was followed up, but nothing came of this.

Van Wyk said that the year after Florencia disappeared, police, following up on leads, searched an informal settlement in Hout Bay for her, but found nothing.

Van Wyk said bushes in Kort Street, Grabouw, had been scoured with the help of sniffer dogs.

Again police came up empty-handed.

Van Wyk said that on October 5, 1994, nearly a year after Florencia had last been seen, human remains were discovered in Nyanga.

It was hoped these were Florencia’s so the case could be closed, but the remains turned out to be those of a boy.

Van Wyk said no leads or information had surfaced over the years.

Michelle Ohlsson, whose nine-year-old son Matthew disappeared 14 years ago, said Langenhoven, with whom she is friends, and her family had struggled to cope after Florencia disappeared. The family did not have a telephone or cellphones and were rarely at their Ravensmead home.

Ohlsson said she often battled to get hold of the family.

The Cape Times was unable to reach them.

Ohlsson said Hendricks had been arrested a few weeks after Florencia disappeared.

“He admitted to selling her. He told (Langenhoven): ‘I sold your child to a person in Grabouw for R25 000.’ But Florencia wasn’t found.”

Ohlsson said that after Hendricks had served his sentence, Langenhoven had seen him in Cape Town.

“She was shaken.”

Langenhoven had later tried to get hold of Hendricks as she wanted to beg him for more information about Florencia. But she did not see him again.

All items reported and shown at www.houtbayblogroll.blogspot have been identified by their owners who will now head along to the SAP to complete formalities. The items were all stolen in the Erica / Ixia St area which is in Scott Estate. None of the homes showed outward signs of forced entry when SSP’s investigated alarms. It appears the thief is entering through the roof and cleverly replacing tiles to conceal his entry. Alarm companies have solutions that can be added to existing alarms to secure the roof spaces.