Kenya reports second Ebola death as health ministry monitors family cluster

Oct 24, 6:17 AM2 min readCovered by 3 outlets

Drafted by AI from the sources below, fact-checked by the Ajako Taja Editorial Team · How we use AI

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Kenya confirms a second Ebola death in a family cluster. Officials say the 65-year-old woman was in quarantine as screening intensifies for regional travelers.

A 65-year-old woman has become the second person to die of Ebola in Kenya's first-ever outbreak of the disease.

The Kenyan health ministry stated that the woman was a close relative of the country's first victim and had been placed in quarantine before she developed symptoms on October 13. Officials emphasized that all current cases are part of a single cluster, with no evidence that the virus is spreading through the community. Seven other patients, including three relatives, three health workers, and a hospital cleaner, are currently undergoing treatment at isolation facilities.

The outbreak involves the rare Bundibugyo species of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment. According to the BBC, this specific outbreak began in the Democratic Republic of Congo in May and has since resulted in more than 4,000 deaths across Africa. Al Jazeera reported that the virus has now reached four countries across central, eastern, and western Africa.

Reuters reported that the Nigerian health minister has linked an Ebola case in Nigeria to the virus found in the Kenyan index case. In response to the regional risk, Kenya has implemented strict screening for travelers from ten high-risk nations, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Ethiopia. People arriving from these countries must now provide a digital surveillance form and a QR code to health officials.

The United States has warned citizens against traveling to Kenya, while neighboring Ethiopia, Uganda, and Somalia have been placed on alert. The International Rescue Committee is currently working with the Kenyan and Congolese governments to manage the risk of new cases crossing borders.

Background

The first victim in Kenya was a man who became ill in September and visited multiple hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo before traveling to Nairobi, where he died on October 5. Since May, more than 9,500 cases have been recorded in the DR Congo during this outbreak.