Uganda closed its border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo after a surge in Ebola cases of a rare variant.
The decision to close the border was made by an Ebola task force led by Ugandan Vice President Jessica Alupo. The flow of people between Uganda and the DRC has spread the rare Bundibugyo Ebolavirus strain to the former, leading to the first confirmed Ebola death in the country’s capital, Kampala, on May 14.
The Ebola outbreak was declared on May 15. At least 220 people are suspected to have died from the disease in the eastern Congo, with suspected cases approaching 1,000.
Ebola is highly contagious and spreads easily through direct contact with the bodily fluids of those infected. Contact with corpses infected with Ebola is one of the primary spreaders.
Ugandan health workers have assisted in containing the spread, but their exposure to Ebola patients has led to fears that it could spread further throughout Uganda. Permanent secretary of Uganda’s Ministry of Health, Dr. Diana Atwine, said that Ebola has spread to Uganda through health workers’ contact with their families.
WHO DECLARES EBOLA ‘VERY HIGH’ RISK IN THE CONGO AS US DEMANDS COUNTRY’S WORLD CUP TEAM ISOLATE
The World Health Organization, meanwhile, has declared the new Ebola outbreak in the DRC a “very high” risk, though it said its risk of spreading globally or even regionally was limited. Uganda’s border closure could help solidify this diagnosis.
Thousands of Congolese refugees have poured across the border into Uganda over the past few years, fleeing the intensifying conflict between the government and M23 rebels. Uganda has struggled to accommodate the influx. Uganda’s border with the DRC includes an expansive area controlled by M23.
