Just one month and 20 days after the World Health Organization declared Liberia free of the Ebola Virus, the country is reporting a new case of the deadly Ebola virus disease.
Mr. Tolbert Nyenswah, Deputy Minister - designate for Disease, Surveillance and Epidemic Control confirmed to FrontPageAfrica Monday evening that the case was discovered after the death of the victim.
Nyenswah who heads Liberia Incidence Management Team during the Ebola outbreak confirmed that the reported case of the deadly Ebola virus was only detected from specimen taken from the corpse of a dead body.
Nyenswah confirmed that specimen from a 17-year old corpse from the village of Nedowian in Margibi County taken before burial tested positive twice and the county surveillance team has increased work in the affected area.
"Specimen from the remains of a 17 year old corpse tested positive on two occasions after our burial team moved into the village and safely took the specimen before safe burial of the corpse", said Nyenswah.
Critics have been piling pressure on the government lately over the reopening of the border between Liberia's next door neighbors Sierra Leone and Guinea, still recording deaths from the deadly virus. But Mr. Nyenswah ruled out any possibility of transfer of the virus from those two countries.
How the latest case surfaced remains a mystery as Liberia has not reported any new case of the virus for nearly two months while the two countries are still reporting increase in cases.
Nyenswah disclosed that from preliminary investigation the deceased felt ill on June 21 and died on the 24 at home in the remote village.
"We have listed 27 contacts and more to come. It is under control, we buried the corpse safely and our team will beef up work in the surrounding areas", Nyenswah said.
According to him, food, medicines and other items will be airlifted to the affected village to keep the residents under quarantine.
Meanwhile, FPA has also gathered that a suspected case from C.H. Rennie in Kakata, Margibi County has been transferred to Gbarnga, Bong County. A test is expected to be performed on that case and the result will likely be known on Tuesday.
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