Ebola suspect held at Entebbe airport

By Taddeo Bwambale

ENTEBBE - Authorities at Entebbe Airport have placed an unidentified woman traveling from Nigeria under isolation, after she developed signs of Ebola virus disease.

The Ministry of health on Monday confirmed that tests had been carried out on the patient to determine if she has Ebola.

 “It is true that someone suspected to have Ebola was been isolated. Samples from the patient have been taken to the Uganda Virus Research Institute in Entebbe and test results will be out in 24 hours,” the health ministry’s spokesperson, Rukia Nakamatte said

She, however, said preliminary investigations had shown that the suspect did not have contact with confirmed cases, one of the ways Ebola is transmitted.

Ebola is spread by contact with an infected person's bodily fluids, such as sweat and blood, and no cure or vaccine is currently available.

The disease has so far killed more than 1,415 people in Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

Details of the Ebola suspect have not been disclosed but she was said to be a university student.
 

An MSF medical worker wearing protective clothing washes his gloves in chlorine at an MSF Ebola treatment facility in Kailahun. (AFP)

West Africa travels cut

Kenya’s Health Cabinet Secretary, James Macharia on Saturday said the country would close its borders to travellers from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Tanzanian Health Ministry advised citizens to postpone all travel to countries where the disease has been detected. Rwanda’s health ministry said its surveillance and emergency management systems were on alert.

All East African Community (EAC) countries have stepped up disease surveillance at their major airports by establishing screening centres.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the epidemic an international health emergency and appealed for global aid to stem the spread.

In a show of solidarity, Canada and the United States have pledged to send consignments of experimental drugs to the West African nations.

Last week, WHO lowered the risk of transmission of Ebola virus during air travel and did not recommend a ban on international travel or trade.

Experts maintained, unlike infections such as influenza or tuberculosis, the risk of transmission during travel was low since Ebola is not airborne.


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