Nanyuki: 320 British troops placed under isolation after 4 tested positive for COVID-19

Reports say that a total of 320 British troops in Nanyuki for Exercise Askari Storm have been placed under isolation.

The Mirror reported that the decision was arrived at after four military personnel who arrived in the country last week for training tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Amid fears that the troops may have brought the new COVID-19 strain into the country, hundreds of local staff including cooks were barred from accessing the barracks forcing more than 1,000 troops to eat rations.

The Sun reported that over 160 military personnel were now living in tents to enforce social distancing at the training site.

“The camp at BATUK has been placed into enhanced isolation in line with the Ministry of Defence’s Force Health Protection (FHP) measures,” the Sun quoted a military source.

Adding: “The British Army takes the health and wellbeing of our personnel and the local communities in Kenya very seriously.

The British Army Training Unit Kenya, known as BATUK is the biggest British base in Africa with an estimated 1,606 people in total.