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Residents of the eastern Congo town of Beni expressed concern after learning that a new Ebola case had been confirmed just five months since the country declared the end of the latest outbreak that has killed six people in the area.
BENI, Congo – Residents of the eastern Congo town of Beni expressed concern on Saturday after learning that a new Ebola case was confirmed just five months after the country declared the end of the latest epidemic that left six people dead in the region.
The case was recorded in eastern Congo, according to the country’s health ministry and the National Institute for Biomedical Research.
A nearly 3-year-old child was sent to Butsili Hospital in Beni after exhibiting various symptoms related to Ebola. He died on October 6 and tested positive for the Ebola virus, according to the research institute and the ministry who made the announcement on Friday.
A hundred people likely to have been exposed have been identified and will be monitored, according to the ministry.
Ebola survivor Maurice Mutsunga hopes Congo’s experience with the disease will help contain its spread quickly.
“When an epidemic starts, people tend to neglect, to minimize, to doubt the existence of the epidemic. And that is what has cost us dearly, ”Mutsunga said. “People are already sufficiently informed about Ebola and we believe people will work with response teams to bring the epidemic under control,” he added.
Less optimistic, others fear a new epidemic as the country has a struggling health system that faces other problems as well.
“I am worried and scared because of Ebola, COVID-19 and the insecurity. We don’t know how to live in Beni. Beni is no longer livable, ”said resident Joel Mambo.
According to the World Health Organization, Butsili was one of the epicenters of the 2018-2020 Ebola epidemic in eastern Congo, considered the second deadliest in the world, killing nearly 2,300 people.
In a statement, the WHO said it was working with local authorities to investigate the new Ebola case, adding that it was not “unusual” for sporadic cases to occur following an outbreak. major epidemic.
It was not immediately clear whether the new case is linked to the 2018-2020 epidemic or to the epidemic at the beginning of the year which killed six people in a few months. Congo has experienced 12 Ebola outbreaks since the virus was first discovered in the conflict-ridden country in 1976.
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