The Department of Health in West Africa confirmed on Saturday that a British national residing in Sierra Leone has tested positive for the Ebola virus. The victim is the first Briton to contract the deadly disease since the outbreak.
Medical experts have been consistently monitoring the crisis in Sierra Leone. The health department did not provide any further details about the victim, but he might be a charity worker helping the victims in West Africa. For now, the authorities are making sure that proper care is provided.
"The overall risk to the public in the UK continues to be very low," said John Watson, Britain's Deputy Chief Medical Officer. "We have robust, well-developed and well-tested NHS systems for managing unusual infectious diseases when they arise, supported by a wide range of experts."
There are no plans of evacuation yet, but he might be flown to the Royal Free Hospital, the only facility in Britain equipped to treat an Ebola victim, according to The Telegraph. The government is still waiting for the Briton's medical assessment results to determine if he is safe to be brought home.
Two American aid workers who were transported to the Emory University Hospital in the United States and given the experimental treatment have already recovered from the disease, reports Reuters.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has documented 1,427 deaths due to Ebola and estimated that it will take up to nine months for the virus to be contained. It also complained of "under-reporting," as the West African regions were allegedly hiding the victims and kept them in the "shadow zones." Lawmakers in Sierra Leone plan to prevent this by passing a law to imprison violators for two years.
"The new regulation will provide for summary trial, meaning trial by a magistrate court alone," Justice Minister Frank Kargbo told Reuters.
As more nationalities are being infected with the Ebola virus, some international flights to and from the West African regions were cancelled, borders were closed, trade restrictions were implemented, and peacemakers were pulled out.
