News Stories: Ebola Virus, Kikwit, Zaire

In 1995 a large epidemic of the Ebola virus, a haemorrhagic fever, occurred in Kikwit, a town about 240 miles from Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Of the 315 cases, 250 died.

The Ebola virus is transmitted through exposure to blood or bodily secretions of an infected person, or through direct contact with the person. Burial ceremonies where mourners have direct contact with the body of the deceased person can play a significant role in the transmission of Ebola.* (Some excerpts from the World Health Organisation)