Ebola: 160 placed under observation in Rivers

Following the death of an Ebola victim in Port Harcourt,
Rivers State during the week, at least 160 persons that made
contact with the victim have been identified and put under
observation.
The Rivers State Commissioner for Health, Sampson Parker,
stated at a news conference at the state’s secretariat in Port
Harcourt on Friday that the people had shown no signs of
the Ebola disease.
He, however, said that the people were strictly under watch.
The commissioner added that the baby of the widow of the
late health worker, who has since been quarantined, was in
good health.
While dispelling rumours that the state was not working with
the Federal Government in tackling the spread of the
disease, Parker said, “Rivers State now has a mobile testing
unit for testing blood samples for the virus. A national Ebola
response team has been set up and headed by the Minister
of Health, Professor Oyenbuchi Chukwu.”
He also stated that all places identified to have been visited
by the late victim after he met with an ECOWAS diplomat,
Oluibukun Koye, were being decontaminated as part of
measures to contain the spread of the disease.
The late doctor’s residence, the Green Heart hospital, where
he was treated and the morgue where his body was kept,
were part of the places being decontaminated.
Meanwhile, there was panic in the University of Calabar
Teaching Hospital in Cross River State over a suspected
Ebola case on Friday.
The scare was intensified when a member of the National
Conference from the state, Mr. Orok Duke, took to his
Facebook page to spread the information.
Duke said an Ebola patient arrived from Port Harcourt and
had been quarantined.
But the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Thomas
Agan, expressed shock over the situation while describing
Duke’s claim as unfounded.
In a text message sent to one of our correspondents, he
said, “I am shocked that someone of your status will post an
unfounded story on Facebook to misinform not only
Nigerians but the world at large! You know the implications
are far reaching!
“Please be informed that there is no case of Ebola both in
UCTH and General Hospital, Calabar. I will advise you to
retract what you have posted immediately Sir!”
The state Commissioner for Health, Angela Oyo-Ita, said it
was not true that an Ebola patient was quarantined at UCTH.
She said, “It is absolutely false. Whoever is bringing that up
does not mean well for the state. A sick patient came in and
people ran away. I received a call and acted on it; so they
got back to me and said the person tested HIV positive. The
person came from Port Harcourt.
“It is not true that people have been quarantined in the
hospital. The patient has been tested for HIV and not Ebola.”
The Ebola Virus Disease has killed five persons in Nigeria,
with five of the deaths occurring in Lagos State, where the
first case of the disease was recorded.
Since the outbreak of the disease in West Africa, at least
1,500 deaths have been recorded.