The deadly Ebola virus has spread to Mali with the diagnosis of a 2-year-old girl, health officials said Thursday.
The child was brought to the country from neighboring Guinea, where the outbreak has killed thousands. The girl was taken to the hospital in Kayes after her father died of Ebola. A nurse noticed she was suffering from Ebola-like symptoms.
From CNN:
A test confirmed the girl has Ebola, Health Ministry spokeswoman Markatie Daou said.
“The girl is still in the hospital in Kayes together with members of her family who might have been exposed to the virus,” she said.
Mali is the sixth African nation to be hit with the deadly virus.
Ousmane Kone, Mali’s minister for public health, called for people in Kayes, west of the capital city of Bamako, to “stay calm” and observe “hygiene measures.”
“We identified the first contacts of the patient,” he said. Even so, he asked anyone who had contact with the girl to contact authorities.
So far, the largest outbreak of the virus in history has killed more than 4,800 in West Africa.
SOURCE: CNN | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty
