Tanzania gets tough on Ebola.

13 Jan, 2009

The health authorities in Tanzania have taken action to prevent an eruption of the Ebola virus in the country following an outbreak of the potentially fatal haemorrhagic fever in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Experts have been deployed to six regions in the west and south of the country to monitor the situation and educate communities on the causes and symptoms of Ebola and prevention measures.

At least 13 people have died of Ebola since the outbreak of the virus in the area around Mweka in south central DRC, which was confirmed in late December. On 8 January Angola shut down part of its border with its northern neighbour in an attempt to contain the spread of the disease.

This is the third Ebola outbreak in DRC in less than 15 years. The last one was in 2007, when up to 187 people died.