[U, X2] WITHDRAWN: [Unfortunate News: Rwanda Had Closed Border With Congo For A Day, As Two Confirmed Cases Of Ebola Appeared; More Expected. But Border Is Open Again.]

It seems clear that this Baltimore radio station is re-posting old ebola stories, and removing the dateline. Here as of Sunday afternoon, we see a story from the very same radio station, on an MD who did die in the US, after contracting ebola in Africa. But as we reported then, that was. . . a year ago. So this entire entry will soon be archived, invisible to the public site. We won't help a radio station stoke unwarranted fear.

And, importantly, there is no indication on the WHO website of any flare up in Ebola. CIDRAP similarly has no mention of a current outbreak. I now suspect the Baltimore radio station was recycling news stories of May 2023 under an October 2023 date. We are thus withdrawing this item. Our sincere apologies. There are border conflicts, related to militia actions, now underway between Rwanda and DRC -- according to reliable local sources -- but no mention of any Ebola. Now you know.

We all know that Ebola flare ups will be all but unavoidable in sub-Saharan Africa from time to time, given how communicable the afflicted can be -- and how the virus may lie dormant, until consumed by a diet that includes bush animals. [In fact, the last recorded flare-up in DRC was just this past May, as we reported in real time. It was swiftly arrested, thankfully.]

Thus far, this current October outbreak in the city of Goma, DRC (pop. ~2 million) seems confined to one household / family. But with the father dead, and his spouse and child both as confirmed cases. . . it is likely to afflict at least a few more people, before it too is arrested.

In any event, it is very fortunate that the ring vaccine strategy is already being deployed in this Congo border city. Here is the latest, from a Baltimore radio station -- sourcing local DRC / online African "on the ground" reporting:

. . .Congo’s presidency says the border is open again with Rwanda hours after its eastern neighbor closed it over the deadly Ebola outbreak. Congo had protested the closure, which went against international health recommendations.

The closure occurred Thursday morning as the first case of direct transmission of the Ebola virus was confirmed in Goma, the Congo city of more than 2 million people on the Rwandan border.

The health ministry has said the 1-year-old daughter of the man who died of Ebola this week in Goma now has the disease. . . .

Indeed, any closure of the borders may drive the likely exposed to. . . hide / vanish, and cross undetected -- making matters geometrically worse, from a pandemic abatement standpoint. Now you know. Let us hope that this stays confined to one, or a small handful of households, this time. Onward -- even in tough news.

नमस्ते