Ebola: Guinea Health Agency head declares 'pandemic' in February
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The disease, which can cause victims to bleed to death, has appeared in Guinea in west Africa for the first time, prompting fears that the incident could escalate. Experts fear the Ebola-like illness, which is 88 percent fatal, could “spread far and wide”.
Health authorities in the country are now monitoring 155 people who may have been in contact with the confirmed case, the World Health Organisation said.
The patient died in Gueckedou in southeastern Guinea – also the location of the 2014-16 West Africa Ebola outbreak.
Georges Ki-Zerbo, the WHO country head in Guinea, said: “There is no known secondary case.
“The contacts have been traced, and 155 people are under observation for three weeks.
“It is active surveillance. The contacts are kept at home, isolated from other members of the family.
“They are visited every day to check on potential symptoms.”
The patient became symptomatic, and visited a small health clinic near his village on August 1.
(More to follow)
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