President puts capital city on Ebola response alert

President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda  on Monday put the country’s capital Kampala on a high Ebola response alert as the country grapples with the deadly disease.

Museveni in a tweet said two cases tested positive in Kampala which came from Mubende, the epicentre of the outbreak, however, there are contacts to the cases and a risk of infection.

“For Kampala city, while the two cases that tested positive came from Mubende district and are regarded as Mubende cases, because of the presence of contacts of these two cases and the risks of infection.

“I have directed a full mobilization of Kampala city into a response mode,” Museveni said.

Museveni’s latest update on the outbreak in the country came after he instituted a 21-day lockdown and night curfew in Mubende and Kassanda districts on Saturday in an effort to contain the spread of the deadly disease.

Of the two patients who tested positive in Kampala, one died, while the other one was under isolation.

Museveni had earlier warned that if the public does not heed medical advice, there was a possibility of Ebola erupting in Kampala. He said already 24 contacts are under quarantine.

“Several such alert cases have been tested and the results have turned out to be negative.

“The Ministry of Health teams will continue to investigate any such cases and inform the public accordingly.’’

According to government figures, as of Oct. 15, the country has 58 confirmed cases of Ebola, 19 deaths, and 20 people have recovered since the index case was reported on Sept. 20.