Kenya records a second death from Ebola
Kyiv • UNN
A 65-year-old relative of Ebola’s first victim has died in Kenya. Seven patients are receiving treatment; the cases remain within a single cluster.
Kenya has recorded its second death from Ebola, as the country battles its first outbreak of the disease. UNN reports this, citing the BBC.
Details
The 65-year-old woman, who was a close relative of the first victim—a man who had arrived from the Democratic Republic of the Congo—died after being placed in quarantine, the Ministry of Health said.
Seven other Ebola patients were receiving treatment in two isolation units, officials added.
All the cases were within "a single cluster, with no evidence of community transmission," the ministry said.
More than 4,000 people have died in Africa since Ebola was confirmed in the DRC in May, making it the second-deadliest outbreak of the disease.
Kenya's latest victim was in quarantine when she developed symptoms on October 13, the Ministry of Health said.
The first victim, on October 5, was a man who fell ill in September and was treated at several hospitals in the DRC before arriving in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, where he died several days later.
Those still receiving treatment include three other relatives of the first victim, three healthcare workers, and a hospital cleaner.
The United States has warned its citizens against traveling to Kenya, while neighboring countries such as Uganda, Ethiopia, and Somalia are also on alert.
According to the International Rescue Committee, which is working with both governments, Kenya faces a constant risk of new cases arriving across its borders, as more than 9,500 cases have been recorded in the DRC.
Kenya has introduced enhanced screening for travelers arriving from the DRC and nine other countries it considers high-risk: Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Angola, Zambia, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and the Central African Republic.
Nigeria's Minister of Health said the country's only confirmed Ebola case appeared to be genetically linked to the strain previously detected in Kenya.
Health officials are investigating whether Nigeria's first case came into contact with Kenya's first patient. Both are believed to have traveled through Entebbe Airport in Uganda earlier this month.
Uganda's Ministry of Health announced on Friday that people who had traveled to the DRC would no longer be allowed to transit through Uganda as part of preventive measures.