Ebola districts sealed off

As the number of suspected cases of the deadly Ebola virus rise in Republic of Congo's northern Region of Cuvette-Ouest, the government and the UN World Health Organization (WHO) announced they had quarantined the districts of Etoumbi and Mbomo. A medical surveillance team is currently monitoring 84 people who could be infected in the two districts, an adviser to the Congolese Ministry of Health, Jean-Vivien Mombouli, said on Monday. Ebola is transmitted through body fluids and tissue of people and chimpanzees infected with the virus. It is one of the most virulent viral diseases known to humankind, according to WHO. On 13 May, WHO reported that nine people had died between 27 April and 11 May 2005 in Etoumbi and Mbomo from an "acute haemorrhagic fever". On 18 May, it confirmed that one of the people had died from the Ebola virus. However, Mombouli said the people being monitored might not be contaminated. The virus takes five to 10 days to incubate, he said. "We will wait for 21 days just to be sure then after that, if the person does not get sick, he is out of danger." Health officials have said they are having trouble enforcing the quarantine, as many people in the districts do not understand how the disease works. Mombouli said that in Etoumbi some people being monitored disappeared for a while into the surrounding forest. The Cuvette-Ouest police chief, Gilbert Moanda-Moanda, said Etoumbi would be quarantined until the end of next week. The government and WHO said the quarantine should be enforced until the epidemic is officially declared over.