Health Principal Secretary Mary Muthoni on Tuesday said the villagers fell ill after consuming water from community spring contaminated with faecal matter.
Consequently, the government has closed the spring in South Mugirango Constituency after laboratory analysis found the water unfit for human consumption.
"We have established that the water from the spring is contaminated and hereby urge the people to stop consuming it, forthwith," Ms Muthoni said at Amarondo village.
The PS had visited the area on Tuesday morning on a fact-finding mission after reports that unknown number of residents had fallen ill.
"We ask the people to abstain from drawing water from the spring and instead find alternative sources of supply," she said.
She added that more samples were still under examination to ascertain the real cause of the disease.
"However, preliminary tests have shown that the water is unsafe," she said.
Further, the PS asked residents to observe high levels of hygiene in order to contain the spread of the disease.
Ms Muthoni, who was accompanied by national and county government officers, visited the spring and several homes of the affected villagers.
Health PS Mary Muthoni in South Mugirango, Kisii county on a fact-finding mission over the outbreak of a strange disease.
Photo credit: Ruth Mbula| Nation Media Group
Earlier, before receiving the laboratory report, Ms Muthoni had given the spring a clean bill of health, saying that it had existed since time immemorial without posing any health risks to its users.
The CS’s sentiments appeared to be in tandem with those of the residents who pointed out that they had consumed the water from the spring for many years without any health complications.
Ms Muthoni said that at least 56 people had been treated, adding that an accurate number of those affected would be provided in due course.
"Please let's desist from spreading gossip. Wait for us to give accurate information," she said.
