New cases of the Ebola virus are now suspected in the West African nation of Guinea, according to the World Health Organization.
WHO has been notified of two suspected cases of Ebola in Guinea-Conakry, ”WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Saturday. Confirmatory tests are underway. WHOAFRO and WHO country office support preparedness and response efforts. “
The latest Reuters report, citing Guinean health authorities, estimates the death toll at three out of eight cases, noting that these are the first cases of Ebola in Guinea since the worst outbreak in the world in 2013-2016.
Local reports also estimate the death toll at three, with a small cluster of cases cropping up in the Gouécké community in the south of the country. Gouécké and the nearby Nzérékoré junction are not far from the border with Liberia and Ivory Coast.
Health Minister Rémy Lamah said at least one patient was taken to Conakry for treatment instead of being kept in isolation, a cause for concern as officials await a second set of results to confirm the Ebola infections.
Lamah promised a more comprehensive explanation when those tests, which are underway, are available.
The first reports from Guinea come when officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo announced a third case of a resurgent outbreak of the Ebola virus in the volatile east of the country.
The World Health Organization said the case was confirmed in Katwa, just a few miles east of Butembo, and the first new case was reported there last week. These new cases have surfaced since Congolese officials put an end to Ebola in June, after an outbreak that claimed 2,300 lives, many of them in Katwa and Butembo.
Image: World Health Organization file