Up to 60 people had been hospitalised for cholera treatment in Mpumalanga by Saturday afternoon, the provincial health department said.
Spokesperson Mpho Gabashane said the number has been rapidly increasing since Thursday, with the area most affected being Bushbuckridge.
Gabashane said there was a possibility that the sudden increase in cholera patients was as a result of some residents still fetching water from nearby streams, but said they were still investigating.
”We are working on creating awareness for people to be more careful,” he said.
The province’s confirmed cholera cases have increased from 20 on Friday to 27 by Saturday afternoon.
Gabashane said the province had a total of more than 100 suspected cases that were still being tested for cholera.
The province’s first cholera-related death was recorded almost two weeks ago following a local couple’s visit to Zimbabwe during the festive season.
One of them had since been cured. No more new deaths from the disease were reported.
Two doctors from the National Institute of Communicable Disease and the World Health Organisation arrived in Mpumalanga on Thursday to offer ”technical support”. — Sapa