Abstract

Background: In 2011, 41 countries experienced water stress with approximately 24% of them depleting their freshwater supply. They had to rely on alternative water sources such as roof harvested rain water (RHRW) with uncertainty about its bacterial safety for human consumption as well as domestic use.   Objectives: We aimed to study the presence of bacterial pathogens in roof-harvested rain water, their sero-typical identity as well as their antibiotic susceptibility profile.  Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study was carried out to assess the contamination of roof harvested rain water (RHRW) from Makondo Sub-parish, Lwengo district, Southern Uganda. RHRW in 47 households was purposively sampled between August, 2011 to February, 2012 and tested for salmonella and E. coli organisms using standard procedures.  Results: In August, E. coli contamination was 76.6% and  Salmonella was 17.02%.  There were decreasing trends for both E. coli and Salmonella overtime.  E. coli contamination was generally significantly higher than that of Salmonella (P = 0.01). Among E. coli serotypes; serotype 09+ was the most predominant.  Salmonella serotype 04+ was dominant throughout all the months. Most Salmonella isolates were resistant to Streptomycin and Ampicillin while E. coli were resistant to Ampicillin.  Conclusion:  RHRW in Makondo sub-parish was contaminated with diarrheal agents of public health significance exhibiting varying antibiotic resistance. Households using this water should be sensitized about rendering this water safe againstmicrobial pathogens.