Four new cases of ebola surface in Congo

The North Kivu health division notified Congo’s health ministry on Saturday of 26 cases of hemorrhagic fever, including 20 deaths in North Kivu province, the ministry said. Four of six samples sent for analysis to the National Institute of Biological Research in Kinshasa, the capital, came back positive for Ebola, the ministry said.

The new cases are in Mangina in the eastern Mabalako health zone, about 30 kilometers (18 miles) west of Beni, a city of more than 230,000 people. Travel into and out of the village has been blocked.

North Kivu governor Julien Paluku called on residents to remain calm.

Ebola, first identified in 1976 in Congo, jumps to humans from animals including bats and monkeys. It spreads through contact with bodily fluids of those infected, including the dead.

Congo on July 24 declared the end of an Ebola outbreak that began in May in the northwest Equateur province and resulted in 54 confirmed cases, including 33 deaths. Health officials said a quick international response and vaccinations of more than 3,300 people were major factors in containing the outbreak.

None of Congo’s outbreaks were connected to the massive one in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone that began in 2014 and left more than 11,300 dead.

Article Appeared @https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/08/02/ebola-virus-congo-reports-four-new-cases/887723002/

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