A second Ebola treatment center has been set on fire at the historic epicenter of the outbreak
Angry villagers at the scene Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo they attacked and burned the tent that was part of the health center where the virus was treated, said the workers there on Saturday. it was second such attack in the district per week.
No one was injured in the attack, according to initial reports, but as patients left to escape the fire, 18 people suspected of having Ebola left the facility and their whereabouts are unknown, said the director of the local hospital.
These enraged residents arrived at the clinic in Mongbwalu town on Friday night and burned the tent erected by the suspects who confirmed the Ebola cases by the charity Doctors Without Borders, Dr. Richard Lokudi, director of Mongbwalu hospital, told the Associated Press.
“We strongly condemn this act because it created panic among the workers and also led to the escape of 18 cases that are suspected of entering the community,” he said.
On Thursday, another medical center was burnt down in Rwampara town after family members were prevented from retrieving the body of a local man suspected to have died of Ebola.
Burial of Ebola victims stirs anger, frustration
The bodies of those who died from Ebola can be highly infectious and lead to further spread as people prepare for burials and gather at funerals. The dangerous practice of burying suspected victims is controlled by the authorities where possible, which is met with protests from families and friends.
There was a public burial of Ebola patients in Rwampara on Saturday under tight security as the situation between health workers and the local community escalated, said David Basima, the leader of the Red Cross team responsible for the burial.
Armed soldiers and police guarded the funeral as Red Cross workers in white protective suits lowered the closed caskets. Family members were crying from a distance.
Basima said that his team, after arriving at the scene, “encountered many difficulties, including opposition from young people and the community.”
“We were forced to inform the authorities to help us, to be safe,” said Basima.
Authorities in northeastern Congo on Friday banned funerals and gatherings of more than 50 people in an effort to stop the spread of the virus.
The outbreak is a serious threat to Congo, says the WHO
The World Health Organization said the outbreak now poses a “very high” risk to Congo – from the previous category of “high” – but that the risk of the disease spreading globally remains low.
The Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said on Friday that 82 cases and seven deaths have been confirmed in Congo, but the disease is believed to be “very large.”
Here it is There is no vaccine for Bundibugyo virusa rare strain of Ebola, which spread undetected for weeks in Congo’s Ituri province following the first known death, while authorities tested another, more common, Ebola virus and found it negative. There are now 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths, although more are expected as surveillance increases.
Another American doctor working with a group of missionaries in the Congo tested positiveand several others are believed to have it revealed.
Dr. Jean Kaseya, director-general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the response to the outbreak of the disease must include building trust in communities.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Saturday three of its volunteers died due to the outbreak of violence in Mongbwalu. The agency said it believes three health workers contracted the virus on March 27 while carrying dead bodies as part of a campaign to help people not related to Ebola.
If confirmed, this would significantly push back the timeline of the outbreak’s first confirmed death in late April in the town of Bunia, the capital of Ituri.
US bans green card holders from Ebola-affected countries
U.S. health officials said Friday night they are barring people with green cards who have been in Ebola-affected countries from returning to the U.S.
Green card holders are people who are not US citizens but have been granted permission to live and work permanently in the United States.
According to a Federal Register notice on Friday, the US government is enacting a law barring green card holders who have recently arrived from Congo, Uganda or South Sudan from re-entering the United States.
It is not clear why South Sudan is on the list as so far the country has not confirmed that there is Ebola in this incident.
Such a ban would help ensure that Ebola testing, contact tracing, quarantine, and medical appointments would be available to US citizens, according to the notice.
Federal law provides time before such decisions become final but the US Department of Health and Human Services can argue that the order could take effect sooner in certain cases.
The department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
