The Ministry of Health has shut down three more food stores after samples collected from various eating places tested positive for vibrio cholera.

Updating the media on the cholera outbreak this morning, Health Minister Dr Chitalu Chilufya announced that Pick n Pay Woodlands bakery section, Debonairs Levy Mall and Mika Hotel kitchen had also tested positive for cholera.

“99 out of 144 water samples have been analyzed and out of these 34 water samples proved positive for e choli which is a fecal coli form and this places were found to be in Kanyama, Matero and Bauleni. We also collected 41 swabs and key results from these swabs is that one from the bakery surface from Pick n Pay in Woodlands was found to be contaminated with fecal choli forms and two from a kitchen in one of the upmarket hotels, Mika Hotel Kitchen, one surface we did find a contamination. Again one surface from Debonairs we found contamination. One swab from Pizza Hut was contaminated and one food handler from a bakery in Matero that sells food was also found to be contaminated,” said Dr Chilufya.

He said government would continue carrying out inspections and urged store owners to put in place preventative measures to avoid being shut down.

Dr Chilufya cholera patients now stands at 2225 since it broke out in October.

Meanwhile, his Local Government counterpart Vincent Mwale has revealed that over 100 new cholera cases have been recorded in the last 24 hours.

Yesterday, government closed three Hungry Lion outlets and the Pick n Pay outlet in town.