By Daphne Psaledakis, Costas Pitas and Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday it would provide an additional $20 million to help fight the Ebola outbreak in Africa, bringing its total direct support to more than $220 million.
The money will support preparedness efforts in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and South Sudan, including for national emergency operations centers, as well as surveillance, testing, border screening and infection prevention and control, the department said in a statement.
It will also help countries distribute critical commodities and manage Ebola patients, it said.
The world’s deadliest outbreak of Ebola was in 2014 in three West African nations: Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. More than 11,300 people died and it took almost two years to control it. That epidemic was caused by the Zaire virus, which is the most common and deadliest form of Ebola.
Ebola isn’t a respiratory virus, so it doesn’t spread far. However, it can spread easily through blood, saliva and other body fluids, as well as contaminated surfaces. Handling the bodies of victims is also a known risk for transmitting the virus.
Ebola causes hemorrhagic fever and affects the body’s blood vessels, damaging vital organs as the virus builds up in the body. Early symptoms include fever, headache, sore throat, fatigue and achy muscles.
There’s no vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo virus, although there are two potential vaccine candidates, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Neither is ready for testing on humans.
There are four species of the Ebola virus that are known to cause disease in humans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Bundibugyo virus was discovered in western Uganda less than 20 years ago. This is just the third time Bundibugyo has been the cause of an identified outbreak. Experts believe African fruit bats may be the source of the virus.