A fresh outbreak of the deadly Ebola disease has been reported in Liberia, with three new patients, including a 10-year-old boy, testing positive for the virus.
Health officials said Friday that the boy and his two immediate family members were taken to an Ebola treatment center outside the capital city of Monrovia, according to Voice of America.
"It all started on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2015 when we received a report from one of our reference laboratories that a blood sample from a live patient tested positive with Ebola. The sample was taken from the patient who presented signs including fever, weakness and bleeding at a local hospital," Liberian health minister Bernice Dahn said Friday, according to anadolu agency.
"The hospital is currently decontaminating the unit. All of the healthcare workers who came into contact with the patient have been notified. We know how Ebola spreads and we know how to stop Ebola but we must remain vigilant and work together," she said, Reuters reported.
Liberia was first declared Ebola free on May 9, but the disease resurfaced in June. The country was declared free of the disease for the second time on Sept. 3.
This is the fourth wave of the outbreak that struck the impoverished West African country. More than 4,800 deaths have been reported in Liberia since the disease's first outbreak in March 2014 as per WHO, according to AllAfrica.com.
The virus killed more than 11,300 patients in West African countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone since the epidemic erupted in December 2013.
