W.H.O flies employee infected with Ebola to Germany for treatment

A World Health Organization (W.H.O) has flown one of its employees who contracted the Ebola virus while working in Sierra Leone to Germany for treatment.

The jet conveying the Senegalese epidemiologist landed in Germany early today, August 27, at the airport of the northern city of Hamburg where a convoy of police and fire brigade vehicles was to guard the specially equipped ambulance on its way to the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, which specializes in treating contagious diseases.

The WHO had in July asked for another of its employees to be treated in the hospital, but the patient died before he was taken there.

According to the WHO, more than 120 health workers across West Africa had died during the deadly outbreak, and more than 240 had been infected.

The Ebola virus has since infected more than 2,600 people and has killed 1,427 in across four countries (Liberia, 624; Guinea, 406; Sierra Leone, 392 and Nigeria, 5).

Nigeria has however said that it has successfully contained the virus since its outbreak in the country when Liberian Patrick Sawyer brought it to the country. The Ministry of health says it has only one patient in its isolation ward while several other people are under surveillance.