Kampala, Uganda —- An outbreak of the Ebola virus has been declared in Uganda’s capital Kampala, says the country’s health ministry on Thursday.
The declaration comes after the case of its first patient, whose samples were confirmed as the Sudan ebola strain.
Unfortunately, the first confirmed patient was also the first fatality of this Ebola Virus outbreak.
The patient was identified as a male nurse at the Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala, who sought treatment at various facilities, including Mulago, and from a traditional healer, due to fever-like symptoms.
The ministry said that the patient experienced multi-organ failure and died from the illness on January 29.
The deceased man has 44 recorded contacts, including 30 health workers, who are now listed for tracing.
Ebola virus which is a highly infectious hemorrhagic fever is transmittable through contact with infected bodily fluids and tissue.
Symptoms of infection include headache, vomiting of blood, muscle pain, and bleeding.
In line with this, the World Health Organization will allocate $1 million to contain the outbreak, while they are coordinating with developers for candidate vaccines.