Submission Statement: Kenya’s health authorities have confirmed the country’s first case of Ebola, after a Kenyan citizen who had been living and working in the Democratic Republic of Congo travelled back to Nairobi on Saturday carrying the virus.
Kenya’s first Ebola case comes as health workers in DR Congo struggle to contain the country’s worst outbreak of the virus, which flared up in the north-east province of Ituri in May.
Health authorities have so far identified 28 contacts of the Kenyan patient, including family members and health workers. They were tracing a further 23 people who travelled on the same Jambojet plane from Uganda, Duale told a press conference.
Efforts to contain the virus in DR Congo have been complicated by the rugged terrain of the conflict-wracked region where it presented, and by the lack of an approved vaccine for the rare Bundibugyo strain responsible.
There have been a total of 8,442 confirmed cases in DR Congo and 4,080 related deaths, according to data up until October 2, which also shows the virus spreading far beyond its initial outbreak area in Ituri.
Posted by DifficultBarber6969
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While bad, Kenya actually has institutions to fight a disease outbreak, unlike DRC.
Uganda has significantly less robust health infrastructure and it managed to extinguish its outbreak quickly.