The Foreign & Commonwealth Office in UK issued a travel alert because of an Ebola outbreak in Congo Republic.
According to the travel warning, it is said to seek emergency medical advice if anyone travelling in Congo fell ill. The medical care is extremely limited there. The Ebola death toll in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen to 26, with eight neighbouring countries also at risk as the deadly disease plagues the region.
UK travel warning confirmed that on 8 May 2018, there were cases of Ebola confirmed in the town of Bikoro, near Mbandaka in Equateur province. On 16 May 2018 a third case of Ebola was confirmed in Mbandaka city. The local authorities are working with WHO to respond.
Ebola is a viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF). It is a severe viral illness with fever and associated with internal and external bleeding. Congo’s health minister announced an emergency as there is a spread of the hemorrhagic fever in an urban area of Congo.
However, the World Health Organization decided not to declare the outbreak a global health emergency, but it called the risk of spread within Congo “very high” and warned nine neighboring countries that the risk to them was high. World Health Organization said there should be no international travel or trade restrictions.
The WHO has reported the first “laboratory-confirmed case” of the Ebola virus in the city of Mbandaka in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Who said that the confirmed case in Mbandaka, a large urban centre located on major national and international river, road and domestic air routes increases the risk of spread within the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to neighbouring countries. The Minister of Health Oly Ilunga said that the vaccination campaign begins from Monday in Mbandaka, capital of the province. It will target, first, the health staff, the contacts of the sick and the contacts of the contacts.
The travellers returning from tropical countries should always seek rapid medical attention if they develop flu-like symptoms (such as fever, headache, diarrhoea or general malaise) within three weeks after return, and be reminded to mention to their health care provider that they have recently travelled.
The health officials are trying to track down more than 500 people who have been in contact with those feared infected. It is a task that became more urgent with the spread to Mbandaka. It lies on the Congo River, a busy traffic corridor. It is an hour’s flight from the capital.
