11°c Overcast
18°c Light rain
The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION
UN health agency says Ebola virus death toll more than doubles to 31 in northeastern Congo
A 43-year-old Congolese patient, centre, who has been confirmed to have Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is comforted by Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors without Borders) nurse Isabel Grovas, left, and Doctor Hilde Declerck, right, in Kampungu, Congo, in 2007. (CHRISTOPHER BLACK / THE CANADIAN PRESS / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES)
GENEVA - The death toll from an outbreak of the Ebola virus in northeastern Congo has more than doubled to 31 over the past week, while 38 other people are either suspected of having the disease or are definitely infected, the U.N. health agency said Friday. Aid workers fear that the disease may be spreading in part due to traditional funeral practices in the region.
The Ebola virus has no cure and is deadly in 40 per cent to 90 per cent of cases. The disease causes severe internal bleeding and can be spread by close person-to-person contact.
Fadela Chaib, a spokeswoman for the Geneva-based World Health Organization, said the latest outbreak in Congo was unusual in that the first person known to be infected was a health worker, and officials suspect that the worker might have picked it up from a patient. Health authorities are trying to find that "index case" — the primary case of infection in the general population — and trace that person's ensuing contacts.
Normally, someone seeking care from a health facility would have been reported first, and that has mostly been the case in the eight previous Ebola epidemics in Congo since the first discovery of the virus in 1976. This is the first Ebola outbreak in the Haut-Uele territory in northeastern Congo.
"The situation is serious," Chaib told reporters.
Among the 69 cases overall, there are 41 "probable and confirmed cases" and 28 suspected cases, WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said. "The rule is that many of the suspected cases are later discarded," he added.
Authorities said last week that 15 people had died in northeastern Congo, where the tradition of washing and displaying of corpses before funerals can spread the epidemic. The tradition is intended to show love and respect for the deceased, but the practice also brings people into close contact with victims of the deadly virus.
Doctors Without Borders, along with WHO and Congo's health ministry, has been conducting education campaigns in the area to warn people of the risks linked to this practice.
The medical workers' aid group also is managing two quarantine centres in the municipalities of Isiro and Viadana, and the U.N. has called for the creation of a $2 million fund to fight the epidemic in Congo.
More Latest News
- Back to Top
- Return to Latest News
Poll
Most Popular Latest News
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Manitoba's changing spiritual landscape
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Leaving a gang isn't easy — Sidney Letandre, now a paraplegic, knows it all too well
- Head-on collision kills pickup driver
- 'It's a beautiful story': There's not always a tomorrow to say you're sorry or make things right
- Two women face rare charges of harbouring alleged murderer
- One dead in Highway 10 collision
- Province announces service for Elijah Harper
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car on Oregon Coast
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- News of city's $17-million winner leaks out on FB
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- US woman credits 'mother's instincts' in chase of 4-year-old daughter's abductor
- Flood victim gets six years for shotgun threat, attack
- Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car on Oregon Coast
- Driver crashes into tree near golf course
- Arrests made after raids on local head shops
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- News of city's $17-million winner leaks out on FB
- Passengers from diverted flight to leave Winnipeg Thursday night
- No threat from bag found at Winnipeg Square
- Susan Griffiths dies in Switzerland
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Marsh Madness: Photographers Fred Greenslade and Joe Bryksa capture spring migration's grandeur at Delta Marsh
- Manitoba's changing spiritual landscape
- Li granted additional day passes
- Raleigh holds annual tour of backyard chicken coops, part of national spread of urban farming
- WHO warns Saudi coronavirus may be spreading; calls for urgent search for source
- Province announces service for Elijah Harper
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Marsh Madness: Photographers Fred Greenslade and Joe Bryksa capture spring migration's grandeur at Delta Marsh
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- U.S. bill would give Canadian snowbirds more time to spend in the sun
- Guitar-playing astronaut bows out of space station with music video of Bowie's 'Space Oddity'
- Microsoft update to address Windows 8 complaints, confusion will be free; to be called 8.1
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- Uganda: Blessed are the children
- Winning 6/49 ticket purchased in Winnipeg
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Dogs can experience separation anxiety and depression just like humans
- Paul McCartney to play Winnipeg Aug. 12
- Ontario steps in to help save ELA
- Saskatchewan professor wants to test the health benefits of nose-picking
- 'Revenge of the redheads': Ginger-haired Montrealers gather in celebration
- An uncommon phenomenon
- RCMP charge man with double-homicide in Ethelbert
- Passengers from diverted flight to leave Winnipeg Thursday night
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.