GASTROINTESTINAL CRISIS: Rhodes students hit by gastro, thrusting Makhanda water system into spotlight (again)

A reported 111 Rhodes University students in the Makana Local Municipality, Makhanda area, have been hit with gastrointestinal illness. The university says the cause is being investigated.

On Tuesday, 20 October 2026, university spokesperson Olwetu Gwanya said the situation extended beyond the university campuses, reaching communities in Makhanda.

“Rhodes University reported a cluster of gastrointestinal illnesses among members of its community. Subsequent enquiries with local medical practitioners indicate that similar cases are being reported elsewhere in Makhanda, suggesting that the situation may extend beyond the university campus.

“The university is working urgently with local public health authorities and environmental health practitioners to establish the possible cause and scope of the illnesses,” said Gwanya. 

The university has confirmed that 111 students have been affected.

“A provincial health response has been mobilised to address the gastrointestinal illness affecting the Makhanda community, with Rhodes University reporting 111 cases among its students,” said Gwanya on Wednesday, 21 October 2026. 

As a precautionary measure, the university says it is working closely with health authorities. The university said students who had severe symptoms were taken to hospital for medical attention and have since returned to campus. 

“The university has taken several precautionary measures to contain the situation, including the provision of bottled water for consumption. Staff and students are urged to remain vigilant and practice safe water use, food handling and personal hygiene, both on and off campus.

“These measures include drinking boiled and cooled or bottled water, using safe water to prepare food and brush teeth, avoiding ice and uncooked food washed in untreated water, and washing hands regularly with soap and water,” said Gwanya. 

Student anxiety

Students told Daily Maverick that water issues had persisted for a while. A student at one of the affected residences said people began to fall ill on 16 October. 

“A student asked on the residence WhatsApp group whether he was the only one having stomach problems after having lunch on Friday the 16th, to which a wave of complaints started pouring into the WhatsApp group … the matter was then escalated to residence management for attention,” said a student who asked to remain anonymous. 

The student said the tap water quality was also an issue. “We’re already taught not to drink water from the taps, use tap water to brush your teeth, or to gargle with it.

“I have been using [bought] water … throughout my university life. I also do not know of anyone who would willingly drink tap water, no matter how desperate … the water colour alone is already a turn-off,” said the student, adding that students were calling for accountability. 

Fifth-year law student Munashe Sithole said he believed the issue might also be traced to the food from the dining halls, including the Desmond Tutu hall, which he used.

“My view is that this thing has been happening for years and I have complained… It’s not that students drink water from the tap; we are [consuming] it through the food. We are always taught not to drink water from the taps, so the only way we can ingest it is through food,” said Sithole.

He said the university did help with water supply; however, he remained fearful.

Meanwhile, Student Representative Council (SRC) secretary-general Keketso Dibakwane said, “Students are currently worried and scared for their own health. It’s exam season, and the last thing anyone wants is to get sick on top of all the stress that already comes with the exam season. There’s just a general sense of anxiety amongst students.”

Municipal response

The Makana Local Municipality says it is working with relevant authorities and technical teams to investigate a reported E. coli detection at Rhodes University and to verify the safety of the water supply.

Differing from the Rhodes University claim that gastrointestinal illness cases had been reported outside the university, municipal spokesperson Anele Mjekula said, “At this stage, no related cases have been reported outside Rhodes University. Municipal teams are also engaging with clinics and schools to determine whether any additional cases have been reported.

“Although there are currently no conclusive signs of wider contamination, these measures are advised as a precaution while testing continues. Teams remain on the ground to assess water quality and determine whether the reported cases are linked to the water supply.”

Anatomy of a crisis

The water crisis in Makhanda reflects a multi-year systemic breakdown of infrastructure, well documented by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), the Auditor-General of South Africa and the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS).

After years of complaints from residents and civil society, the SAHRC launched an investigation into Makhanda’s crisis, releasing a scathing report in June 2026. The Commission's findings established that Makhanda’s water issues are not new. Whether it's access or quality, people in the university town have contended with a protracted water crisis for most of the past decade.

The commission’s findings established that Makhanda’s water problems stemmed not from a natural lack of water resources, but from institutional and operational breakdown.

The report found that municipal wastewater facilities, specifically the Belmont Valley and Mayfield Wastewater Treatment Works, were either severely overloaded or entirely non-functional. This had led to widespread raw sewage spills across residential streets, public spaces and rivers.

The SAHRC concluded that Makana Municipality had infringed core constitutional rights, including the right of access to sufficient water (Section 27), human dignity (Section 10), an environment not harmful to health or well-being (Section 24), and children’s rights (Section 28).

Additionally, the DWS’s most recent Blue Drop report (released in 2023) assessed the quality of drinking water in South Africa and found that Makhanda water quality stood at 32.46% in 2023, a steep drop from 70% in 2014.

Under South African National Standard 241, municipal drinking water must meet strict microbiological and chemical safety thresholds. However, the Blue Drop report found that Makana Local Municipality, where Makhanda is located, had an unacceptable microbiological quality, scoring only 79.89%, far below the 98% benchmark.

The reports also found that, despite extended periods of non-compliant water quality, Makana failed to issue mandatory public advisory notices or “boil water” alerts during the assessment period, resulting in regulatory penalties from the DWS.

Daily Maverick asked the DWS in the Eastern Cape to confirm the source of the water contamination, how widespread the issue was, and what interventions had been put in place, but did not receive a response in time for publication. DM