Ebola in America: Texas health care worker becomes first person to contract disease on US soil October 12, 2014 Ebola is now officially spreading in the US, after a Texas health care worker tested positive for the virus today. The worker had been treating Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan at a Dallas hospital, a statement from the Texas health services department confirmed. It marks the first time someone has contracted the deadly [...]
Ebola hits economy: West Africa epidemic becomes serious risk to financial markets October 10, 2014 Ebola now poses a serious risk to financial markets. The disease, which has killed more than 3,800 people since the current epidemic began in West Africa in February, has joined the list of factors that could have a catastrophic impact on world markets, according to the World Bank. Weak global economic growth and the [...]
Ebola outbreak: Passengers entering UK will be screened at border October 9, 2014 Passengers entering the UK from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, all countries at high risk of Ebola, would be screened at the border, the government announced yesterday. The news came as a number of new suspected cases emerged outside west Africa, including a nurse in Australia and a British man in Macedonia. UPDATE: [...]
World Bank calls for $20bn fund to tackle Ebola spread October 9, 2014 Jim Kim, President of the World Bank, has called for the introduction of a global fund worth $20bn (£12bn) to help tackle the Ebola epidemic currently gripping West Africa. Yesterday, the United Nations' loan provider predicted that Ebola could cost the global economy as much as $33bn over the next two years if it [...]
Where has Ebola spread to? Australia latest country to test possible victim October 9, 2014 A woman is being tested for Ebola at a hospital in Queensland, Australia, according to health officials. The 57-year-old went to hospital after developing a fever – one of the symptoms of the disease. She had recently returned from a trip to Sierra Leone. The results are expected to be known within the [...]
Cost of Ebola outbreak could go over $32.6bn, says World Bank Group October 9, 2014 If the Ebola epidemic currently gripping West Africa is not brought under control soon, the cost to the global economy could amount to more than $32.6bn by the end of next year, according to the World Bank Group. The outbreak began in Guinea in February and has since spread to Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria [...]
UK to send 600 troops to combat Ebola in Sierra Leone October 9, 2014 The UK will send troops to Sierra Leone next week to help combat the deadly Ebola virus. The total number of military personnel in the country will rise to 750, as 150 were already in place in the country. Following an emergency Cobra meeting, foreign secretary Philip Hammond today said three Navy Merlin [...]
Britain to deploy 750 personnel to Africa in fight against Ebola October 8, 2014 Britain yesterday announced it would deploy more than 750 personnel to Sierra Leone next week to aid the fight against the deadly Ebola virus. The UK will also provide an aviation support ship and three Merlin helicopters as part of increased efforts to help contain the virus, which has so far claimed the lives of 3,879 [...]
Travel firms take hit as Ebola fear fails to recede – London Report October 8, 2014 BRITAIN’S main equity index fell yesterday as worries about Ebola reaching Europe hurt travel firms and telecoms tester Spirent Communications became the latest UK company to warn on profits. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 13.34 points lower, or 0.2 per cent, at 6,482.24 points, taking its fall from a 14-and-a-half–year high hit last month [...]
Is there a cure for Ebola? Scientists identify a way to target all strains of the virus October 8, 2014 Scientists have made a discovery that could help them develop a cure for all strains of the Ebola virus – a crucial step in preventing future outbreaks of the disease. Ebola kills between 50 and 90 per cent of those it infects, and outbreaks have been occurring with increasing frequency in recent years. The [...]