Share

WHO warns over Ebola in Nigeria's Port Harcourt

Lagos - An Ebola outbreak in Nigeria's oil producing hub of Port Harcourt could spread wider and faster than in the financial capital, Lagos, the World Health Organisation warned on Thursday.

The UN health body said the arrival of the virus in Port Harcourt, which is 435km east of Lagos, showed "multiple high-risk opportunities for transmission of the virus to others".

The haemorrhagic fever, which has hit five countries in West Africa and caused nearly 2 000 deaths this year, first arrived in Nigeria when a Liberian finance ministry official died in Lagos on 25 July.

He was taken from the city's airport to a private hospital by two officials from the West African regional bloc Ecowas.

One of the officials later died of the disease but the other evaded detection to travel to Port Harcourt, where he fell ill and was treated in secret at a city hotel room by medical doctor Ike Enemuo from 1-3 August.

'Numerous contacts with the community'

The Ecowas official recovered but the WHO said Enemuo continued to treat patients at his private clinic and operated on at least two people, despite showing symptoms from 11 August of Ebola - of which he later died.

"On 13 August, his symptoms worsened; he stayed at home and was hospitalised on 16 August," the WHO said in an emailed statement.

"Prior to hospitalisation, the physician had numerous contacts with the community, as relatives and friends visited his home to celebrate the birth of a baby.

"Once hospitalised, he again had numerous contacts with the community, as members of his church visited to perform a healing ritual said to involve the laying on of hands."

Over the six days he spent in hospital "the majority" of healthcare staff treated him while two doctors performed an abdominal scan at an ultrasound clinic the day before his death, the statement added.

Multiple risk exposure

"Given these multiple high-risk exposure opportunities, the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in Port Harcourt has the potential to grow larger and spread faster than the one in Lagos," it added.

A total of 255 people were currently under surveillance in Port Harcourt for signs of Ebola, Nigeria's Health Minister Onyebuchi Chukwu said on Wednesday.

An elderly woman who was a patient at the hospital where Enemuo was treated died from the disease, taking the number of victims in Nigeria to seven out of 18 confirmed cases.

Enemuo's wife - who is also a doctor - was in an isolation unit in Lagos, while his sister is under quarantine in Port Harcourt.

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
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
41% - 397 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
59% - 560 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.2%
Platinum
910.50
+1.5%
Palladium
1,011.50
+1.0%
Gold
2,221.35
+1.2%
Silver
24.87
+0.9%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.8%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.8%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
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