Congo: Ebola outbreak 'certainly' to last 3-4 months more
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The second-deadliest Ebola outbreak in history is "certainly" expected to continue for another three or four months, Congo's health minister said Thursday.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Health Minister Oly Ilunga also sought to calm concerns days ahead of a presidential election in which millions of people will use touch-screen voting machines. The deadly Ebola virus is spread via infected bodily fluids, so some worry they may pick it up from the screens.
The minister said precautions have been taken. Several tons of hand sanitizer have been deployed for use in polling stations throughout the outbreak zone in eastern Congo, and voters are being encouraged to sanitize their hands before and after using the machines.
So far there have been 549 Ebola cases in the outbreak that was declared on Aug. 1, including 501 confirmed cases. There have been 278 confirmed deaths.
