Kenya’s Health Ministry has confirmed the country’s first imported Ebola case after a Kenyan citizen arrived from the Democratic Republic of Congo through Uganda.
Health Minister Aden Duale said the patient, who arrived in Kenya on Saturday, developed symptoms associated with hemorrhagic fever and was admitted to Nairobi Hospital, where the person tested positive for Ebola.
Duale said! “the patient died late Monday while receiving treatment.”
He said; “health authorities had placed the country on high alert and were monitoring for possible additional cases.”
According to the Minister, 28 contacts, including family members and health workers who attended to the patient, had been identified.
He added that “another 23 passengers who travelled on the same flight from Uganda were being traced.”
The Ministry’s Director, Patrick Amoth, said the identified contacts would remain in isolation for 21 days and would be released after testing negative for the virus.
Amoth said the deceased would be buried within 24 hours in line with recommended public health and safety protocols.
Kenya is the fourth country to report an Ebola case in the current outbreak, which was declared in eastern Congo in mid-May.
Uganda recorded 20 cases, while France reported one case. Before Kenya’s latest case, there had been no active Ebola cases outside Congo since Uganda declared its outbreak over in late August.
The outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment.
Vaccine and treatment trials are underway in Congo’s Ituri Province, the epicentre of the outbreak.
The World Health Organisation has warned that the outbreak could become the deadliest if efforts to track and contain the virus fail to keep pace with its spread.
AP
