More than six weeks after Liberia was officially declared Ebola free, the deadly fever has returned to the West African nation. A 17-year-old male was confirmed dead from the disease this week.
The teen’s body wasn’t tested for Ebola until after he died, but officials in Liberia, are looking into how he contracted the disease, who he came in contact with before his death, and if travel may have been a factor. They are stressing that Liberians should go “about their business as normal,” however.
“We have said over and over again that there was possibility that there could be a resurgence of the virus in Liberia, but our surveillance team, our capacity is very strong,” said Deputy health minister Tolbert Nyenshaw. “The only complication is that the person died before we tested the body as part of our surveillance system.”
The first known case of what became the most deadly Ebola outbreak in history, was in neighboring Guinea in December 2013. A toddler contracted the disease which spread through the country, and into Liberia, and Sierra Leone, before making it’s way to the U.S. Since then, over 11,000 people died from Ebola, nearly half of which were in Liberia.
In this latests case, the deceased lived in a town 30 miles from Liberia’s international airport, but far from the bordering countries of Sierra Leone and Guinea. His body was buried according to the guidelines set by the country, officials said.
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Photo: AP Photo/Brynn Anderson
