9 Dead, 102 Cases Reported as Lassa Fever Hits Ondo State

9 Dead, 102 Cases Reported as Lassa Fever Hits Ondo State

No fewer than nine persons have been killed and 102 cases recorded as the deadly Lassa fever hits Ondo State.

This was confirmed by Governor Rotimi Akeredolu who, in a state media broadcast said the cases of the deadly disease were recorded in eight local government areas of the state.

The governor asserted that there are 127 hospital contacts and 308 community contacts lines listed in all the affected local government areas to tackle the scourge, Punch writes.

Pointing out that the state government was not relenting in its efforts to contain the spread of the disease, the governor further stated that the infected patients were being managed at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, while confirmatory tests were done at Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Irrua, Edo State.

He added that the Emergency Preparedness and Response Team had been reactivated at the state and local government levels in addition to active surveillance and contact tracing in the affected local government areas.

Also, the government ordered health officials in the state to monitor the burial of casualties, while demanding that any occurrence of sudden death be reported to the health officials in the local government for supervision of the burial.

The Commissioner for Health in the state, Dr. Wahab Adegbenro, gave the directive at a meeting held with primary health care coordinators in the 18 local government areas of the state in Akure, the state capital.

The commissioner said, “The state government has not relented in our efforts to contain the disease. We have already mobilised our surveillance team to all the local government areas.”