A teenage boy has died of Ebola in Liberia, the first fatality since July in one of the three West African countries hit hardest by the worst-ever outbreak of the disease.
The 15-year-old died on Monday night, said Dr Francis Kateh, chief medical officer and acting head of Liberia’s Ebola case management system.
The teenager, who lived in Liberia’s eastern Paynesville district, was the first patient in the country since it was declared Ebola-free for a second time in September.
His father and brother also have tested positive for Ebola and have been taken to a treatment centre along with his mother and two other siblings.
Health officials have identified nearly 160 people who might be at risk of being infected with the disease, including eight health-care workers “who are at high risk because they came in direct contact with the boy,” said Sorbor George, a spokesman for the country’s health ministry.
Liberia said on Monday that it had sought help from two experts from the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention to determine the cause of the latest cases.
More than 11,300 deaths have been recorded for the entire outbreak, which was first confirmed in March 2014 and has been concentrated in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, according to the World Health Organisation.
Liberia has recorded more than 4,800 deaths and more than 10,600 cases.
The country was first declared Ebola-free on May 9th, but new cases emerged in June resulting in two deaths, including one in mid-July. The WHO declared Liberia Ebola-free again on September 3rd.