According WHO, a new Ebola virus outbreak has declared in Guinea, West Africa, where three people have died so far.
The outbreak declared in the rural town of Goueke, N’Zerecore prefecture, after cases of Ebola confirmed by a national laboratory. This marks the first time the disease has been reporting in the country since the outbreak ended in 2016. The Global Health Agency said in a statement on Sunday.
“Initial research reveals that a nurse at a local health facility died on January 28, 2021. After his funeral, six people who attended the funeral reported Ebola-like symptoms. Two of whom died and four has hospitalized.” WHO Africa.
Guinea was one of the three countries worst hit by the Ebola epidemic in West Africa in 2014-2016. It is the largest country since the virus was first discovered in 1976.
The disease caused global concern in 2014 when the world’s worst epidemic began in West Africa. It is killing more than 11,300 people and infecting around 28,600 on its way through Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
“Seeing the rise of Ebola in a country that is suffering from a very severe disease, is of great concern. However, based on the expertise and experience gained during the previous outbreak, the health team in Guinea is rapidly closing down on a viral pathway and slowing further infections,” he said. Matshidiso Moetti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.
WHO responses to Virus Outbreak
“WHO is helping authorities to create structures for testing, contact tracing. Also for treatment and get a full general response,” he added.
The WHO says it is working with health authorities in Liberia and Sierra Leone to strengthen community surveillance of cases in their border areas and strengthen their ability to test cases and monitor health facilities.
Earlier this month, the authorities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) reported a flare of the Ebola virus in the eastern part of the central African country, more than two months after the end of the last outbreak.
Ebola, a tropical fever that emerged in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976, is transmitting from wild animals to humans.
