A new case of Ebola has emerged hours after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the West African outbreak was over. Tests on a person who died Sierra Leone tested positive for the virus.
It comes after officials declared Liberia Ebola-free on Thursday.The virus claimed more than 11,300 lives over two years. Nearly
23,000 children lost at least one parent or caregiver to the disease.
Some 17,000 survivors are trying to resume their lives though many
battle mysterious, lingering side effects. Studies continue to uncover
new information about how long Ebola can last in bodily fluids.
Liberia, which along with Sierra Leone and Guinea was an epicenter of
the latest outbreak, was first declared free of the disease last May,
but new cases emerged two times – forcing officials there to restart the
clock.
Before this latest case emerged, Rick Brennan, WHO director of
emergency risk assessment and humanitarian response, said at a news
conference in Geneva: ‘While this is an important milestone and a very
important step forward, we have to say that the job is still not done.
‘That’s because there is still ongoing risk of re-emergence of the
disease because of persistence of the virus in a proportion of
survivors.’
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