A new case of Ebola has emerged hours after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the West African outbreak was over.
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Two swab tests carried out on the deceased person by British health organization Public Health England came back positive in the Tonkolili district east of the capital Freetown, the spokesman said late on Thursday. Neither the gender nor age of the deceased was released.
The Ebola outbreak killed more than 11,000 people across west Africa, after it first broke out in southern Guinea in December 2013.
Sierra Leone was declared free of the virus on 7th November, but the region as a whole was declared clear when Liberia was pronounced Ebola-free on Thursday. The risk of re-introduction of infection is diminishing as the virus gradually clears from the survivor population, but we still anticipate more flare-ups and must be prepared for them.
The WHO official warned that the job is still not done adding that there is still an ongoing risk of re-emergence of the disease because of the virus in some survivors. Gasasira further thanked the Liberian Government for developing a national policy to ensure that the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) survivors have access to medical and psychosocial care. A massive contact-tracing initiative launched by the Health Ministry identified 152 contacts – 25 of whom were healthcare personnel, all of whom were later declared Ebola-free after 21days of observation.
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While it has said that another major outbreak of the disease is unlikely, it reiterated its message of caution.
