Five People Died in Guinea as Ebola Virus Flares Up

Another patient has died of Ebola virus in southeast Guinea. It is the fifth count since March 17 and had raised the concern that a recent flare-up could turn into outbreak.

The first four Ebola-related deaths are from the village of Korokpara, which is about 200 kilometers away from Macenta prefecture where the fifth death occurred, according to Fode Sylla Tass, spokesman for National Coordination of the Fight against Ebola in Guinea.

It is believed that the latest victim, who has not been identified, acquired the Ebola after having a direct contact with the first patients in Korokpara. The man was buried in Makoidou village hout any sanitary precautions, Reuters reported.

Guinea was declared Ebola free in December after becoming one of the worst hit countries. The World Health Organization, however, warned them about possible flare-ups.

Report says Korokpara resisted efforts to fight Ebola on the first outbreak and believed that that is how the people from that area contracted the disease. There is an estimated count of 816 people who are possible to have come to contact with the first four recent victims, according to Guinea's Ebola coordination unit.

"Since the re-emergence of the disease, we have recorded five deaths, three probable and two confirmed," said Sylla.

After few hours, Liberia's northern border with Guinea was closed "as a precautionary measure due to the new outbreak of Ebola," with all the new cases recorded close to Liberian territory, said the country's information minister.

A married couple who consecutively died in southern village of Koropara is suspected to be an Ebola case. The wife died late February followed by her husband in early March, according to Medical Express.

The worst outbreak was recorded in West Africa where at least 11,300 people were killed by Ebola since 2013. It is believed that the main cause of the virus transmission is during burial where the bodies of the deceased are often washed.