Ebola in Europe: Woman being tested at hospital in Berlin

A woman is being tested for Ebola at a hospital in Berlin after showing early symptoms of the disease.

 

According to broadcaster rbb, an employee of a job centre in the Pankow district of the city said that her client collapsed and had to be rushed to Virchow hospital by emergency services.

 

She said that the job centre had been cordoned off and 600 people were quarantined inside. Berlin's fire department, however, would not confirm that it was handling a case of Ebola and that quarantine had been enforced at the Job Centre. 

 

In order to determine whether someone is infected with Ebola, a blood test must be done. Early symptoms include fever and circulation issues, similar to the common flu virus or other tropical diseases like malaria. It is transferred through bodily fluids like blood and mucus.

 

The Ebola epidemic that is currently spreading through West Africa and has so far infected over 2,000 people and killed over 1,100 in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria.

 

Last week, the German foreign ministry urged its citizens to leave several countries in West Africa in order to prevent further spread of the disease. It described the situation as “critical”. 

 

It is not the first time this has happened in the country; in recent weeks there have also been media reports of suspected cases in Frankfurt and Hamburg among travellers from Africa, but none of the tests has turned out positive to date.