In a message dated 10/16/00 5:23:39 AM Central Daylight Time, AOL News writes: << Subj: Uganda Ebola Outbreak Kills 33 Date: 10/16/00 5:23:39 AM Central Daylight Time From: AOL News BCC: Ahab42 Uganda Ebola Outbreak Kills 33 .c The Associated Press By HENRY WASSWA KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) - The death toll from an Ebola virus outbreak in northern Uganda has risen to 33 people and left another 63 hospitalized, a government-owned newspaper reported Monday. The Ministry of Health had said in a statement Saturday that at least 31 people had died, but New Vision newspaper said two more people died Sunday in Gulu, a town about 225 miles north of Uganda's capital, Kampala. Reports from the site of the outbreak say the victims are bleeding from the mouth, nose and ears. The area is unsafe due to attacks by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army. The hemorrhagic virus, which kills with devastating speed, turned up two weeks ago and the victims include three student nurses who treated the first Ebola patients in Gulu, the Ministry of Health said. Ninety percent of Ebola victims die, according to the World Health Organization. While not as deadly as HIV, Ebola is terrifying because of it's speed and how it kills. Within four days of coming in contact with the bodily fluids of someone carrying the virus, flu-like symptoms set in, followed by vomiting and diarrhea. Ten to 15 days later, the victim ``bleeds out'' through the eyes, nose, ears and other bodily orifices. Ebola outbreaks usually only last a few weeks since the victims die faster than they are able to spread the virus. The Ebola virus then disappears, only to re-emerge later. Four investigators from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control will leave for Gulu either Monday or Tuesday to confirm the Ugandan diagnosis and determine how to contain it, CDC spokeswoman Barbara Reynolds said. There is no known cure for Ebola and it is not understood why some patients survive. Scientists also do not know where the virus lives when it is not infecting humans, though contact with monkeys has led to many cases in humans. Uganda had never before recorded an outbreak of Ebola, but there have been cases of the closely related Marburg virus. Ebola was named after a river in Congo, where it was first detected in a number of villages in 1976. Ebola first gained worldwide attention in Richard Preston's 1994 best seller ``The Hot Zone,'' which recounted how the virus turned up in research monkeys in Reston, Va. It was also the subject of the 1995 fictional film ``Outbreak,'' starring Dustin Hoffman. The last major Ebola outbreak struck Kikwit, Congo, in 1995, and killed 245 people. The last recorded outbreak was in Gabon in February 1997, when 10 people died. AP-NY-10-16-00 0623EDT Copyright 2000 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press. Announcement: America Online has added Reuters newswires to News Profiles. To add Reuters articles to your daily news delivery, go to KW: <A HREF="aol://5862:146">News Profiles</A> and click on "Modify Your News Profiles." Then click "Edit" and add Reuters from the list on the left. To edit your profile, go to keyword <A HREF="aol://1722:NewsProfiles"> NewsProfiles</A>. For all of today's news, go to keyword <A HREF="aol://1722:News">News</A>. >>
Uganda Ebola Outbreak Kills 33 .c The Associated Press By HENRY WASSWA KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) - The death toll from an Ebola virus outbreak in northern Uganda has risen to 33 people and left another 63 hospitalized, a government-owned newspaper reported Monday. The Ministry of Health had said in a statement Saturday that at least 31 people had died, but New Vision newspaper said two more people died Sunday in Gulu, a town about 225 miles north of Uganda's capital, Kampala. Reports from the site of the outbreak say the victims are bleeding from the mouth, nose and ears. The area is unsafe due to attacks by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army. The hemorrhagic virus, which kills with devastating speed, turned up two weeks ago and the victims include three student nurses who treated the first Ebola patients in Gulu, the Ministry of Health said. Ninety percent of Ebola victims die, according to the World Health Organization. While not as deadly as HIV, Ebola is terrifying because of it's speed and how it kills. Within four days of coming in contact with the bodily fluids of someone carrying the virus, flu-like symptoms set in, followed by vomiting and diarrhea. Ten to 15 days later, the victim ``bleeds out'' through the eyes, nose, ears and other bodily orifices. Ebola outbreaks usually only last a few weeks since the victims die faster than they are able to spread the virus. The Ebola virus then disappears, only to re-emerge later. Four investigators from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control will leave for Gulu either Monday or Tuesday to confirm the Ugandan diagnosis and determine how to contain it, CDC spokeswoman Barbara Reynolds said. There is no known cure for Ebola and it is not understood why some patients survive. Scientists also do not know where the virus lives when it is not infecting humans, though contact with monkeys has led to many cases in humans. Uganda had never before recorded an outbreak of Ebola, but there have been cases of the closely related Marburg virus. Ebola was named after a river in Congo, where it was first detected in a number of villages in 1976. Ebola first gained worldwide attention in Richard Preston's 1994 best seller ``The Hot Zone,'' which recounted how the virus turned up in research monkeys in Reston, Va. It was also the subject of the 1995 fictional film ``Outbreak,'' starring Dustin Hoffman. The last major Ebola outbreak struck Kikwit, Congo, in 1995, and killed 245 people. The last recorded outbreak was in Gabon in February 1997, when 10 people died. AP-NY-10-16-00 0623EDT Copyright 2000 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press. Announcement: America Online has added Reuters newswires to News Profiles. To add Reuters articles to your daily news delivery, go to KW: <A HREF="aol://5862:146">News Profiles</A> and click on "Modify Your News Profiles." Then click "Edit" and add Reuters from the list on the left. To edit your profile, go to keyword <A HREF="aol://1722:NewsProfiles">NewsProfiles</A>. For all of today's news, go to keyword <A HREF="aol://1722:News">News</A>.
