Newsletters
The United States is restricting commercial air travel for its citizens and nationals who have recently spent time in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), as an Ebola outbreak continues to spread across the country.
The U.S. Embassy in the DRC has announced that travelers who have visited the country within 21 days of their departure will be barred from boarding any flights bound for the United States.
"Travelers who have been in the DRC within 21 days of their flight will not be allowed to board flights with U.S. destinations," the embassy stated on its official website. The advisory added that all U.S. citizens and nationals who have visited the country should arrange to remain outside the DRC for at least 21 days before attempting to re-enter the United States.
These emergency border measures come as the Central African nation battles a severe Ebola outbreak, which public health officials warn is currently spreading faster than containment operations can manage.
The medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders, also known by its French acronym MSF, said this week that the epidemic is advancing more rapidly than the response on the ground.
The group said confirmed infections have surpassed 2,000 and called for a substantial expansion of the public health response to slow further transmission.
Doctors Without Borders said the virus has spread across 41 health zones in the two months since the outbreak began.
A DRC Health Ministry update issued this week reported 2,011 confirmed cases and 754 deaths since the outbreak was declared on May 15, putting the case fatality rate at 37.5%.
Ebola is a severe, often fatal illness that spreads through contact with the blood, secretions or other bodily fluids of infected people or animals.
Symptoms can include fever, severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting and, in advanced cases, internal and external bleeding.
The current outbreak is unfolding in a region affected by armed conflict, which has complicated efforts by health workers to reach affected communities.
The new U.S. travel measure adds to a growing list of precautions taken by governments and international bodies since the outbreak was declared, as health authorities work to prevent the virus from crossing borders.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
7 min read
