Share

Liberia works to contain Ebola, find source of new cases

Monrovia - Liberia is working hard to contain Ebola and find the source of the latest infections of the deadly virus recorded this week.

The West African country previously succeeded in containing the outbreak, despite being initially the hardest hit with more than 4 800 deaths. The last recorded case before this latest emergence was on March 20, according to the World Health Organisation.

"We will contain it quickly because of where we are in the learning curve as far as Ebola is concerned," said Dr Philip Ireland at the John F Kennedy Medical Center in the capital, Monrovia.

Ebola was found on the corpse of a 17-year-old boy who died on Sunday. Two new cases have been linked to the teen, the only two known cases as of Friday, said Liberia Ebola response chief Tolbert Nyenswah.

WHO spokesperson Margaret Harris said on Friday there is strong community engagement in Nedowein, where the new cases were found.

"We still have to determine the source of this infection," she said. Investigations include speaking with community members, mobilising experts and genetic sequencing, she said.

"We're looking at the genetics of the virus to see how closely it is related to viruses we're seeing in Guinea, in Sierra Leone or in previous chains of infection in Liberia," she said.

She praised Liberia's continued high alert and surveillance, saying that is how the country detected these latest cases.

Authorities have traced about 175 people who had contact with the dead teen, who first became ill on June 21 and went to a local health facility where he was treated for malaria and discharged.

Experts warned the risk of Ebola remained in Liberia until it was eradicated in Sierra Leone and Guinea. The majority of the more than 11 200 deaths come from these three countries.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Will you use Amazon's newly launched SA website for your online shopping needs?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes, I'm ready to fill up my cart
46% - 163 votes
No, I'm not buying into the hype
54% - 194 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.52
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.16
+0.3%
Rand - Euro
19.91
-0.0%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.22
+0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.3%
Platinum
979.06
+1.3%
Palladium
975.00
-0.9%
Gold
2,313.86
-0.4%
Silver
27.25
-0.7%
Brent Crude
83.33
+0.4%
Top 40
70,790
+0.2%
All Share
76,930
+0.2%
Resource 10
61,038
-0.6%
Industrial 25
107,159
+0.1%
Financial 15
16,711
+0.7%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE