Ebola Outbreak - ‘New Phase’ As Virus Reaches 1 Million City, 23 Dead

Authorities in Congo, in close cooperation with the World Health Organisation, were scrambling after the deadly Ebola virus reached a 1 million strong city as the first urban cases were reported.

So far, 23 people have died, and there is no certainty as to how many are affected at this moment. First estimates are around 40, but as it is unknown how far the virus has spread, this figure is only a rough appraisal.

Mr Jose Barahona, Oxfam Director in the Democratic Republic of Congo, admitted: “If the number increases in Bikoro it’s bad but it’s not a disaster but if these three cases in Mbandaka become 10 or 12 then we have an urban epidemic.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">DR Congo’s government says a new case of Ebola was detected in the northwest city of Mbandaka and warned that the outbreak — which has killed 23 people — entered a &quot;new phase.&quot;<br><br>A batch of 4,000 experimental vaccines were delivered to the capital Kinshasa. <a href="https://t.co/qdJy8OjS1O">pic.twitter.com/qdJy8OjS1O</a></p>&mdash; AJ+ (@ajplus) <a href="https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/996899248259059712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2018</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“Boats move up and down the river, people and goods travel.”

“One of the risks is that someone with the virus could easily access one of the boats and start moving up and down.”

The city of Mbandaka, which has a population of around 1 million people, was where the first urban cases of the deadly virus were recorded. Whereas all previous infections were in rural areas, this time the virus could spread at lightning speed if authorities fail to contain it. So far authorities have identified 12 people in the city that are suffering from the illness.

Related coverage: http://thegoldwater.com/news/25525-Congo-New-Ebola-Outbreak-Confirmed-17-Dead-So-Far

Congolese Health Minister Oly Ilunga Kalenga: "We are entering a new phase of the Ebola outbreak that is now affecting three health zones, including an urban health zone."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A first batch of 4000 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Ebola?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Ebola</a> vaccine doses just arrived to Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.<br>Additional doses should be deployed in the coming days to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DRC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DRC</a>.<br>There are ongoing preparations to start the ring vaccination as soon as possible. <a href="https://t.co/BydsRquLPR">pic.twitter.com/BydsRquLPR</a></p>&mdash; World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) <a href="https://twitter.com/WHO/status/996708853793345537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2018</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The WHO is scrambling to get medical supplies to Congo as soon as possible, knowing full well that the last time there was a major outbreak of the disease (2014-2016), some 11,300 people died in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

Related coverage: https://thegoldwater.com/news/25818-Ebola-Outbreak-WHO-Puts-10-African-Countries-On-High-Alert-Video

Mr Henry Gray, of Doctors without Borders, claimed: “It is paramount to trace the suspect case in order to have a clearer view on how it reached the city.

“We are working closely with the ministry of health and the other organisations in the field to implement a coordinated, tailored and rapid response to stop the spread of Ebola.”

Source:

http://www.france24.com/en/20180517-new-phase-congo-ebola-outbreak-after-first-urban-case