WHO warns of yellow fever

Local health officials and World Health Organisation (WHO) representatives have begun action to prevent a yellow fever epidemic in neighbouring Liberia from spreading into Sierra Leone. WHO said its disease control experts and those from the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health were traveling to Kenema, Pujehun and Bo - the districts at risk - to train health workers in identifying and managing the mosquito-borne disease. A delegation from the ministry and WHO is also to visit Liberia to coordinate emergency cross-border activities with their counterparts. There are thousands of Sierra Leonean refugees in Liberia and there have been recent reports that they have been trying to return home. WHO has sent 30,000 doses of vaccines to Sierra Leone in response to the threat. This is in addition to 150,000 doses it supplied last week to Liberia for a mass vaccination campaign due to begin this week, the organisation said. This outbreak was first reported in Liberia on 16 August in Grand Cape Mount County, which borders on eastern Sierra Leone. The disease has now spread into six of Liberia’s 14 counties, WHO said. On 16 August it received reports of 29 cases and four deaths “and more are coming in”.