Two weeks after the first wave of patients with stomach complaints in Gostivar, the numbers still are not falling. On 26 July, the Dr Ferid Murat General Hospital and the local health centre carried out 127 first examinations for symptoms of gastroenterocolitis, and two patients were hospitalised.

That is two more than the previous day, when 125 first examinations were recorded. At the general hospital 91 patients were seen - 41 in the infectious diseases ward and 50 in paediatrics. Another 36 sought help at the health centre.

Fifty in paediatrics. That is the figure worth holding on to, because it is ten higher than the previous daily count. When the situation stabilises among adults but keeps rising among children, that usually does not mean things are calming down.

The numbers from two weeks

Between 14 and 26 July, the two Gostivar health facilities recorded a total of 4,197 first examinations - 2,351 at the general hospital and 1,846 at the health centre. The number of examinations is not the same as the number of formally reported cases: 833 infectious disease reports have been filed so far, 32 more than the previous day, and epidemiological services interviewed 563 patients, roughly 68 percent of those reported.

Sit with the gap between 4,197 examinations and 833 reports. That is a difference of nearly five times. Formally it is explainable - not every examination ends in a confirmed diagnosis of infectious disease. But when a single municipality performs over four thousand first examinations for the same cluster of symptoms in thirteen days, the statistic that ends up in the official registers is the one that says 833.

The interior minister said earlier that the water has been cleared of faecal matter and can be used for bathing and washing dishes, but is still not safe for drinking or cooking. The authorities say continuous monitoring will track quality until the water is confirmed safe.

So: the water supply of a town in Macedonia was contaminated with faecal matter, and two weeks later you still cannot drink from the tap. The daily statements bring fresh numbers on examinations, hospitalisations and interviews. What still has not been announced, with a name attached, is who allowed faecal matter into the town's water mains.

The number of examinations will start to fall - that is how outbreaks work. The question of accountability will not fall on its own. Someone has to keep carrying it until it gets an answer.