British Healthcare Worker Infected With Ebola Is Evacuated From Congo

A British healthcare worker infected with Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is being evacuated to the United Kingdom for specialist treatment at the Royal Free Hospital in London.

The Foreign Office stated that established procedures for infectious diseases have been activated and that the risk to the public remains low. The patient is the first British citizen evacuated from the current outbreak and the third person to test positive before returning to Europe. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization approved clinical trials for two new vaccine candidates, ChAdOx1 and mRNA-1469, which were developed specifically for the Bundibugyo virus.

The World Health Organization expert group recommended the vaccines for further clinical evaluation, and they will join the Tumaini multi-vaccine trial launched in Bunia. The ongoing epidemic is caused by the Bundibugyo virus and has recorded 10,668 confirmed cases and 5,198 deaths as of November 3. The outbreak has spread to 67 health zones across eight provinces since it was declared in May. France confirmed a case in June involving a doctor who returned from a humanitarian mission in Congo, and a Swiss woman was evacuated to Geneva from Uganda last month.