Page 9 - ARUBA TODAY

A9
WORLD NEWS Tuesday 16 July 2019

Congo tracing contacts of first Ebola case in eastern city

By KRISTA LARSON the disease. In addition, at
Associated Press each checkpoint he wrote
BENI, Congo (AP) — Af- different names and sur-
ter feeling sick for several names on the lists of travel-
days the pastor boarded ers, probably indicating his
a bus traveling to eastern desire to hide his identity
Congo's largest city. Only and state of health," the
upon arrival at his destina- ministry said.
tion did anyone suspect he Upon arrival in Goma he
had the highly deadly and sought medical treatment
infectious Ebola virus. and health workers there
The preacher managed to immediately suspected
pass three different health he had Ebola, which was
checkpoints along the later confirmed by a lab
way, aimed at stopping test. The man remains in an
those who are sick with Eb- Ebola treatment center in
ola and highly contagious. Goma, while authorities try
Now health authorities to reconstruct his route.
along his route are trying to Congolese health officials
hunt down all those he may have been preparing for
have been in contact with months for the possibility
after the man became Go- a case would emerge in
ma's first confirmed Ebola Goma and as a result more
case on Sunday. A worker from the World Health Organization (WHO) decontaminates the doorway of a house on a than 3,000 frontline health
It's a crucial task to con- plot where two cases of Ebola were found, in the village of Mabalako, in eastern Congo Monday, workers already have been
tain the spread of Ebola June 17, 2019. vaccinated. Neighboring
in Goma, home to more Associated Press Rwanda also has taken
than 2 million people and measures to stop the dis-
the largest city to confirm and go somewhere." though some already were during his evangelical trip ease's spread across its bor-
a case of the disease since Health experts have long on edge after learning to Butembo, one of the der as well.
the epidemic here began feared that the disease re- about the sick pastor. towns hardest hit by Ebola While the epidemic has be-
nearly a year ago. sponsible for killing nearly "God help us if Ebola is in Congo. Last Tuesday the come the second deadli-
"It's the door of this region 1,700 people so far since now in Goma," said Baud- preacher fell ill and was est in history with nearly
to the rest of the world," August would make its way ouine Rudahigwa, 30, who seen at home by a nurse 1,700 killed in Congo, its
said Dr. Harouna Djingarey, eventually to Goma. The immediately feared the before he began his bus spread to neighboring Af-
infectious disease program city is an important transit case could prompt restric- trip to Goma. rican countries has been
manager for the World point for the region and tions against her and fel- Somehow he was able to mostly contained. A family
Health Organization's re- beyond, and also a bus- low residents. "My children evade detection during who fell while in Congo did
gional office in eastern tling trade hub drawing are now on alert that they the roadside health check- cross the border into neigh-
Congo. "From here you can travelers from throughout can't greet or play with oth- points, when all travelers boring Uganda where two
fly to go to everywhere in the east. ers. They are washing their get off the bus, wash their of them then died. Howev-
the world. If we don't have Congo's health ministry hands all the time." hands and have their tem- er, no one they came into
the control over the con- sought to reassure people The health ministry said that perature taken. contact with fell ill during
tacts, some high risk con- late Sunday that the situ- the pastor had preached "During the checks, he did the 21-day incubation pe-
tacts may fly, take a plane ation was under control, at seven different churches not seem to show signs of riod after the exposure.q