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PORT MORESBY - More than 170 students from two secondary schools in Papua New Guinea's highlands have been diagnosed with typhoid, health officials say.
Salan Ere, the chief executive officer of Wabag Hospital in Enga Province, said 130 students from Wabag Secondary School and another 42 from Kopen Secondary School were confirmed as having typhoid following blood tests.
Students had complained that poor kitchen, toilet and dormitory facilities were the cause of the outbreak.
But Ere told PNG's Post-Courier newspaper it was too early to blame school facilities.
The hospital sent out officers to carry out blood tests at the schools and on food sellers in Wabag town to see if they were carriers, he said.
He urged food sellers and buyers to be hygiene-conscious when dealing with uncovered food sold in open-air markets.
- AAP
