Nigeria Moves to Stem Outbreak of Lassa Fever

The summons regardless, elsewhere, Adewole confirmed that one more person has died of the disease, increasing the number of deaths to 41.

He expressed concern that if nothing urgent was done to curtail further outbreak and spread, it would reach a magnitude where it could be declared a national emergency.

The Borno State government on Tuesday said it had taken precautionary measures to prevent the spread of Lassa Fever into the state.

While stating that there was a cure for Lassa fever, the minister advised Nigerians to be vigilant as early detection helps in nipping the disease in the bud.

The senate president tasked the senate committee on health to follow up on the contents of the senate resolution by doing their due diligence on their oversight functions with the federal ministry of health, and the federal minister of health.

Senator described the situation that since the outbreak of the virus in 2014, which has so far claimed about 35 lives, nothing had been done to checkmate further outbreak of the disease.

“In the last 48 hours the government raised a four-man expert committee, chaired by Prof”.

The senate also moved to observe a one minute silence for the Nigerians killed since the Lassa fever outbreak began, and condoled with the families of all those that had lost relatives to the disease.

Kayode Akinmade, the State’s Commissioner for Information, said outbreak control teams have been organized in all of the 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the State.

In a related development, the Benue state government had directed people in the state to desist from eating rats for the meantime.

Isaac Adewale, said there are no new cases of the disease in the last 72 hours.

Chief Medical Director, CMD, of Dalhatu Araf Specialists Hospital, Dr. Ahmed Yakubu Ashuku, disclosed this to journalists in Lafia, the state capital, adding that the other patient is responding to treatment.

He assured that contacts of all confirmed cases are under surveillance for proactive response in case of any suspectibility of the disease among them.

It also urged non-affected states to be educated on preventive measures.