New Ebola outbreak detected in Africa

Some 246 cases and 80 deaths have been reported, mostly in the gold-mining towns of Mongwalu and Rwampara in the eastern Ituri province, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

On Friday, May 15, Ugandan authorities reported a death from the Ebola virus. The country’s health ministry said a 59-year-old man who died the day before tested positive for the virus. He had previously arrived in the country from DR Congo.

Officials said Uganda has not yet identified any domestic cases of the disease.

Ebola hemorrhagic fever was first discovered in 1976 in Zaire (now DR Congo). It is believed to have spread from bats. This is the 17th outbreak of the Ebola virus in the country.

The disease spreads through direct contact with body fluids and through broken skin, causing severe bleeding and organ failure.

The first symptoms – fever, muscle pain, fatigue, headache and sore throat – are followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rash and bleeding.