Two inmates have died after a cholera outbreak at Kurwa Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kano, and the Nigerian Correctional Service has dispatched senior medical personnel to the facility for sustained monitoring. The Service said the incident began on September 17 when an inmate developed vomiting and diarrhoea, and laboratory tests by the NCoS medical team and Kano State public health authorities confirmed cholera on September 23.
Chief Superintendent of Corrections JN Osuji, the Service spokesman, described the immediate medical response. "The inmate was immediately admitted and treated at the facility’s medical centre, while emergency medical protocols were activated the following morning as health workers intensified medical intervention and monitoring," Osuji said. One of the two fatalities occurred inside the custodial centre, the other at the Kano State Infectious Diseases Hospital.
The Controller-General, Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, offered condolences to the families and ordered protective measures for inmates and personnel. "The Controller-General has further directed a team of senior medical personnel from the Service's National Headquarters to proceed to the facility for sustained monitoring of the situation," the Service statement said.
The NCoS reported that coordinated interventions have brought the outbreak under control and that no further deaths have been recorded since diagnosis. The Service said it has implemented additional preventive steps in collaboration with the Kano State Government and is strengthening disease surveillance, early detection and prompt medical response across custodial facilities.
Authorities reiterated that qualified medical care remains available to inmates and urged the public to rely on official channels for updates as teams continue on-site monitoring. The Service framed the deployment and stepped-up surveillance as the immediate next phase of its response, with continued coordination with state health authorities to prevent further spread inside the custodial environment.
