Uganda closes its border with Congo as cases of a rare Ebola type surge

Ugandan authorities have ordered the closure of the border with Congo amid a surge in Ebola cases

KAMPALA, Uganda -- Ugandan authorities on Wednesday ordered the closure of the border with Congo “with immediate effect” amid a surge in cases of a rare type of Ebola in its neighbor and as cases emerge at home.

The decision was made by a local Ebola task force led by Vice President Jesca Alupo after a rise in Ugandan health workers exposed to Ebola by Congolese patients who crossed the border before the outbreak was declared on May 15.

Uganda has reported seven cases of Ebola, including the first case of a 59-year-old man who died in Kampala, the capital, on May 14.

But while the Ebola case load in Uganda is not spiking, the number of locals exposed to infection via health workers has been rising.

“They have families, and so the number has been increasing,” Dr. Diana Atwine, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Health, said of health workers.

The number of suspected Ebola cases in eastern Congo is nearing 1,000, with at least 220 suspected deaths.