Guinea confirms Ebola resurgence after 3 die from deadly disease, declares new epidemic

Guinea health officials on Sunday confirmed that at least three people are dead following an Ebola outbreak, according to the Associated Press.

Four other people are confirmed to be infected with the extremely deadly virus.

The three cases are the first of their kind after the world's deadliest Ebola epidemic ended five years ago.

What are the details?

The country's ministry of health stated that all seven positive cases were traceable to a nurse's Feb. 1 funeral and has declared an epidemic following the diagnoses.

Minister of Health Remy Lamah told the AP, "I confirm it's Ebola. The results prove it."

The news organization also reported that the government has sent an emergency team to "support local teams in Goueke" and "accelerated the procurement of Ebola vaccines from the World Health Organization."

The outlet reported that the patients reported suffering such symptoms as diarrhea, vomiting, and bleeding.

The nation is already battling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and is still recovering from the previous Ebola outbreak, which the AP reported killed at least 2,500 people. Overall, more than 11,300 people died during the previous Ebola epidemic, which spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

"Guinea's announcement comes one week after eastern Congo confirmed it also had cases," the AP noted. "The cases are not linked."

The origin of the infections remains unknown at the time of this reporting.

Anything else?

CNN on Monday reported that West African countries are on "high alert" following the epidemic's announcement.

"The Red Cross said in a statement that a network of more than 700 trained volunteers has been 'activated as part of a first wave of response and the government has called on people to respect hygiene and prevention measures and to report the signs of the disease to health authorities,'" CNN reported.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO's regional director for Africa, told the outlet, "It's a huge concern to see the resurgence of Ebola in Guinea, a country which has already suffered so much from the disease. However, banking on the expertise and experience built during the previous outbreak, health teams in Guinea are on the move to quickly trace the path of the virus and curb further infections."

Moeti added, "WHO is supporting the authorities to set up testing, contact tracing, and treatment structures to bring the overall response to full speed."