Dakar [Senegal], July 12: A second US citizen has contracted the Ebola virus amid the severe outbreak of the disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to US health authorities.
The Atlanta-based Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday that a US citizen working for a humanitarian organization in the central African country has been infected. It was not immediately clear whether the person was a man or a woman. The person has tested positive for the Bundibugyo variant, which is currently spreading rapidly in the region. The CDC is supporting contact tracing and risk assessment to prevent further infections together with the aid organization, Congolese health authorities and other partners.
Ebola is a life-threatening viral disease transmitted through direct physical contact and contact with bodily fluids. According to the Congolese government, 1,830 infections have been laboratory-confirmed since the start of the latest outbreak in May. A total of 648 people have been confirmed to have died. (DPA)
Source: Qatar Tribune
