Rhodes University Probes Campus Water After Gastro Outbreak Hits Students

MAKHANDA, SOUTH AFRICA  —  Rhodes University has launched a water probe with the Department of Water and Sanitation to establish whether its internal water system caused a gastrointestinal outbreak that sent more than 100 students and staff for treatment, GroundUp reported on 28 October. The Rhodes University water probe follows weeks of uncertainty about the source.

Students and staff were treated for diarrhoea, stomach cramps and vomiting, and many reported falling ill after eating food served at the university’s dining halls, according to the report. Students have been told not to drink tap water until further notice.

Inside the Rhodes University water probe

The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) was asked to coordinate a technical working group that includes the Department of Water and Sanitation, the university and Makana Local Municipality. The group will map the sewage and drinking water networks that supply the Green Reservoir and the upper campus. In the meantime, the university will provide drinking water and reinforce safe-water practices.

Makana municipal manager Pumelelo Kate said the municipal water system was not the source of contamination. “The E.coli levels and other microbiological elements in water were tested,” he said. On Tuesday, university spokesperson Olwetu Gwanya said the source of the outbreak had not been conclusively determined.

Student Aphiwe Siphika said she was admitted to Settlers Hospital after eating at a dining hall. “I started feeling dizzy and nauseous,” she said. She now avoids tap water entirely. “Even when I am making my noodles, I use bottled water.”

The Eastern Cape Department of Health had not answered questions sent by GroundUp by the time of publication.

A student told Daily Maverick earlier this month that people began falling ill on 16 October. The university provided bottled water and advised people to boil water, avoid ice and avoid uncooked food washed in untreated water, according to that report.

A dispute over the source

The probe follows conflicting accounts of how far the illness spread. Daily Maverick reported on 21 October that 111 students had reported gastrointestinal illness and that the university had said similar cases were reported elsewhere in Makhanda, while the municipality said no related cases had been found outside the university and that it was investigating a reported E. coli detection at Rhodes.

Makhanda has a long record of water and sanitation problems. The South African Human Rights Commission found in June 2026 that Makana Municipality had infringed constitutional rights, including access to water, and that two wastewater treatment works were severely overloaded or not functioning, causing raw sewage spills. The 2023 Blue Drop report rated Makhanda’s water quality management at 32.46 per cent, down from 70 per cent in 2014.

Mapping the campus water and sewage networks is a standard step when investigators suspect contamination inside a property rather than in the municipal supply. Cross-connections between sewage and drinking water pipes, damaged pipes, contaminated storage tanks or backflow can introduce bacteria even when the water entering a site is safe. Food hygiene is another possible route, since many patients linked their illness to dining halls.

The outcome of the Rhodes University water probe will matter for responsibility and repairs. If the problem lies in the university’s internal network, the institution will need to fix pipes and storage; if it lies with food handling, kitchens will need inspection and retraining; if it lies with municipal supply, the wider town is at risk.

Investigators usually combine water sampling, inspection of kitchens and stored food, and laboratory tests on patient samples. Stool tests can show whether a bacterium, virus or parasite is responsible, which in turn points to the most likely source.

The Rhodes University water probe will also be watched by other Makhanda residents, who have experienced water outages, discoloured water and sewage spills for years.

The university has said it will provide drinking water to students and staff in the interim, while the working group carries out its assessment.

The case is one of several water-related outbreaks in South Africa this month. In Bronkhorstspruit, east of Pretoria, 833 people sought treatment for gastrointestinal illness linked to unchlorinated water, and scientists have described the situation there as an outbreak by any scientific measure.

Most gastrointestinal infections resolve within days, but dehydration can be serious. People who are ill are generally advised to drink oral rehydration solution and seek care if they cannot keep fluids down or show signs of severe dehydration.

GroundUp did not report a timeline for the working group’s findings.

 

Why it matters: Identifying whether pipes, storage or food caused the illness determines the fix, and protects thousands of students living on campus.

 

Source: GroundUp (Laney van Wyk), October 2026.