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Uganda: Traveling Girl from Congo Dies of Ebola

Associated Press

   KAMPALA, UGANDA - A 9-year-old Congolese girl who tested positive for
   Ebola in neighboring Uganda has died, officials said Friday, as the
   World Health Organization said that the outbreak has neared 3,000
   cases.

   The young girl's body will be repatriated with her mother back to Congo
   for a funeral, according to Dr. Eddy Kasenda, Ebola representative in
   the Congolese border town of Kasindi.

   "We are finalizing the administrative formalities so that the body is
   repatriated and buried here in Congo, her native country,'' Kasenda
   said. "We are collaborating with the health services of neighboring
   Uganda and we will strengthen the sanitary measures here in Kasindi.''

   A Ugandan official at the hospital where the girl had been in isolation
   confirmed her death overnight. He spoke on condition of anonymity
   because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.

   The girl, who was traveling with her mother, was identified at a border
   screening Wednesday as a possible Ebola patient and isolated.

   Porous borders
   Although cases of cross-border contamination have been rare, this case
   highlights the risk of Ebola spreading across the border into
   neighboring Uganda and Rwanda. Borders in the region are often porous,
   and many people traveling at night use bush paths to cross over.

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