Massive Ebola Outbreak Continues to Rage; Case Count Surpasses 1,000:
The tally of deadly Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ticked above 1,000 this weekend as health responders continue to struggle to thwart the disease amid violent conflict.
The outbreak has been raging since August in the country’s North Kivu and Ituri provinces, which sit on the eastern side of the country, bordering South Sudan, Uganda, and Rwanda. The World Health Organization reported 1,009 cases (944 confirmed, 65 probable), including 629 deaths (564 confirmed, 65 probable) on Saturday, March 23.
The outbreak is the second largest of all time, surpassed only by the 2014 West African outbreak, which involved more than 28,000 cases and 11,000 deaths.
Violent attacks and lingering distrust have hampered medical responses throughout the outbreak. Earlier this month, militants attacked a treatment center in the city of Butembo in North Kivu, killing a police officer and injuring health workers. Last month, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) suspended medical responses after two other attacks on treatment centers. In both attacks, unidentified assailants partially burnt down facilities.
If the disease won't kill them, the violence could get them, instead. Or their family. What can they do? Leave? Where do they go? And what if they cannot afford to leave?
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Tuesday March 26 2019, @03:32PM (2 children)
The comments really took a nose dive from the start.
Ebola is endemic to really poor areas of the world, is quite resilient, and very deadly. Those are the kinds of things that really make Ebola scary. Also, air travel has brought the world mere hours apart from any other place in the world. It's unfortunate that stories like this don't generate more press in developed nations. Perhaps then, there would be a greater push towards eradicating or controlling outbreaks. Though, that may not have helped the current situation.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday March 26 2019, @04:24PM
I sense a potential new meme . . .
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 26 2019, @04:27PM
Source? If 15%+ people in these areas have antibodies towards it then it can't be that deadly. It seems to be very deadly in the subset of cases that make it to a hospital to get reported, but those seem to be only 0.1% (1/1000) max of the total cases. If doctors are only seeing the top tenth of a percent worst cases then it would appear much more dangerous than it is.
Some back of the napkin considerations here:
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