Two Ebola patients who had run away from a hospital in the Congolese city of Mbandaka were found dead today. Another patient, who had fled the hospital on Saturday, was found alive that same day. The three patients were in quarantine.
The head of MSF’s mission in the city reacted to the incident. The hospital is not a prison, he said, the patients cannot be locked up, says eMedium.
The report about the fledged patients coincides with the warning from the World Health Organization that the fight against the highly contagious disease has reached a critical point. It is the ninth time that Ebola erupted in Congo.
In the coming weeks, it must be clear whether the disease can be kept under control. So far, 27 Congolese have succumbed to Ebola. Medics have drawn up a list of 628 people who have had contact with Ebola patients. They and many thousands of others are being vaccinated.