Reports from health authorities in Liberia have confirmed that a new case of Ebola has been identified in the country, which had previously been declared Ebola-free.
The Associated Press reports that a 10-year-old boy has been diagnosed with Ebola. He was taken to treatment center outside the nations’s capital, Monrovia, on Thursday, where he is now being cared for.
Liberia was declared Ebola-free on May 9th, but then a small outbreak saw four cases reported in June. The nation was then declared Ebola-free for a second time on September 3rd. The news means that the country will have to wait for 42 days after this case is cleared to be confirmed as Ebola-free for a third time.
The news was confirmed for Associated Press by Dr. Francis Kateh, the chief medical officer and acting head of the Ebola Case Management System in Liberia.
Neighboring Sierra Leone celebrated being free of the disease earlier this month.
[Associated Press on LA Times]
Image by USAID