Three new cases of Ebola have been diagnosed in Liberia, a country that was declared free of the virus in early September. This is a major setback for the country and the region, which has been trying desperately to end an epidemic that has killed more than 11,300 people.
The first of the new Ebola patients was a 10-year-old boy in Paynesville, a suburb of the capital city Monrovia, according to Liberian Minister of Health Minister Bernice Dahn. He lives with his parents and three siblings, and two family members have tested positive for the virus.
All six family members, along with other high-risk people who have been in contact with them, are being cared for at an Ebola Treatment Unit in Paynesville, Dahn said at a news conference.
"The hospital is currently decontaminating the unit. All of the healthcare workers who came into contact with the patient have been notified," she said. "We know how Ebola spreads and we know how to stop Ebola but we must remain vigilant and work together."
"The family obviously is at particular risk and is being investigated right now," said Bruce Aylward, the head of Ebola response for the World Health Organization, at a press conference in Geneva. The boy had no history of contact with an Ebola survivor or victim, he said.
To be declared free of Ebola, a country or region must go 42 days from the time when the last patient tests negative for the virus. This length of time is twice the 21-day incubation period for Ebola. However, the virus is known to survive longer than that in certain tissues in the body, including the eye and the spinal cord.
Liberia has had more than 10,600 cases of Ebola and 4,808 deaths from the virus since the outbreak started in March, 2014, according to WHO.
The virus has killed a total of about 11,300 people in the West African countries of Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. Sierra Leone was declared free of the virus on Nov. 7 and Guinea has begun its countdown to the end of the virus.
