Health and Wellness
- (a) How many patients were treated at or hospitalised in public health facilities in the Cape Town metropolitan area during (i) December 2025 and (ii) January 2026 for illnesses where exposure to contaminated marine or ocean water was confirmed by medical assessment as a contributing factor and (b) what types of illnesses were confirmed in these cases;
- whether her Department has identified any abnormal increase in (a) 2020, (b) 2021, (c) 2022, (d) 2023 and (e) 2024 in confirmed cases of illness linked to contaminated marine or ocean water exposure; if so, what were the contributing factors identified;
- what surveillance or monitoring mechanisms does her Department utilise during peak beach season to track potential health risks associated with recreational water use, including risks related to potential water contamination?
(1)(a) The Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness does not routinely classify or record cases based on confirmed exposure to contaminated marine or ocean water as a contributing factor. As such, the number of patients treated or hospitalised for this specific cause in December 2025 and January 2026 is not available in a standardised format.
(1)(b) Patients may present with a range of conditions potentially associated with water exposure, including gastrointestinal illness, skin infections, ear infections, and respiratory symptoms. However, attributing these conditions directly to marine or ocean water exposure is clinically complex and not routinely confirmed or recorded as a single causative factor.
(2) The Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness has not identified any abnormal increase in confirmed cases of illness specifically linked to contaminated marine or ocean water exposure over the period 2020 to 2024.
It should be noted that water quality monitoring and the management of coastal water safety fall within the mandate of local government.
(3) The Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness utilises established public health surveillance systems to monitor disease trends and identify unusual increases in cases that may indicate potential public health risks.
This includes syndromic surveillance, notifiable medical condition reporting, and routine monitoring of health facility data to detect spikes in conditions such as diarrhoeal disease or other infections that could be associated with environmental exposures.
Where any unusual trends are flagged, they are assessed and escalated through the appropriate public health channels, including coordination with relevant authorities responsible for environmental health and water quality monitoring, for further assessment and actioning.
