Ebola kills at least 14 in Uganda: reports
29 July 2012, by Andria Cheng - New York (MarketWatch)
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ebola-kills-at-least-14-in-uganda-reports-2012-07-29An outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus has killed at least 14 people in western Uganda in July, according to media reports, citing Ugandan officials.
Residents in the Kibaale district had originally thought the unexplained deaths from the mysterious illness were related to witchcraft before Uganda heath officials and a World Health Organization representative confirmed at a news conference on Saturday that it was Ebola, U.K.’s newspaper the Guardian reported on Sunday.
The Guardian said terrified patients have fled the hospital where some of the victims had died.
The disease in 2000 killed 224 people in Uganda and left hundreds more traumatized, Associated Press reported, adding there’s no cure or vaccine for the highly infectious virus that kills quickly.
An outbreak in 2007 killed at least 37 people in Uganda, the Guardian reported, adding the government at the time discouraged public gatherings and urged people not to shake hands.
It said another outbreak in May last year killed a 12-year-old girl.
Ebola was first reported in 1976 in Congo and is named for the river where the virus was recognized, the AP reported, citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
