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Ebola outbreak: WHO puts 10 countries on 'high alert'
http://www.dw.com/en/ebola-outbreak-who-puts-10-countries-on-high-alert/a-43746378Ebola outbreak: WHO puts 10 countries on 'high alert'
Date 11.05.2018
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday said 10 countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its neighbors, have been put on high alert after local authorities declared an Ebola outbreak earlier this week. "We are very concerned, and we are planning for all scenarios, including the worst-case scenario," said WHO emergency response chief Peter Salama in Geneva. Up to 18 people are suspected of dying from infection so far.
Salama said that WHO officials are most worried about the spread of Ebola in Congo-Brazzaville and the Central African Republic, since they are both connected to the outbreak area through river systems. He noted that the latest outbreak has occurred in a remote area near Bikoro. But if the virus spreads to Mbandaka, the capital of DRC's Equateur province home to more than one million inhabitants, it could have devastating consequences, he added.
(snip)
The WHO said it is ready to deploy an experimental vaccine campaign, but is waiting to receive permission from DRC authorities.