Ivory Coast confirms first Ebola outbreak in more than 25 years

This colorized transmission electron micrograph (TEM) obtained March 24, 2014 from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, reveals some of the ultrastructural morphology displayed by an Ebola virus virion. (HANDOUT / CDC / Cynthia Goldsmith / AFP)

Ivory Coast health authorities have confirmed the country’s first Ebola outbreak in 25 years, according to an emailed statement from the World Health Organization late Saturday.

The patient who had arrived from Guinea by road on August 12 was admitted to hospital after experiencing a fever and is currently receiving treatment

The patient who had arrived from Guinea by road on August 12 was admitted to hospital after experiencing a fever and is currently receiving treatment, the statement said.

ALSO READ: WHO declares Ebola outbreak in Guinea over after four months

“It is of immense concern that this outbreak has been declared in Abidjan, a metropolis of more than 4 million people,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organization regional director for Africa. “However, much of the world’s expertise in tackling Ebola is here on the continent and Ivory Coast can tap into this experience and bring the response to full speed”.

The world’s top cocoa producer took heightened protective measures in February when neighboring Guinea declared an outbreak, which was declared over in June. Guinea was the epicenter of the 2014-16 Ebola epidemic, which spread mainly to Liberia and Sierra Leone, infecting more than 45,000 people in West Africa and killing more than 11,000.

READ MORE: DR Congo declares end of latest Ebola outbreak

Previous post Warning to labs over antibody tests from overseas
Next post All 16-, 17-year-olds in England to be offered first vaccine dose