Six Suspect Cases of Coronavirus Awaiting Test Results

ADDIS ABEBA – Ethiopia has announced that there are no confirmed cases in the country as it awaits for the confirmatory test results of six coronavirus suspect cases.

The east African nation registered 14 suspect cases. And eight of them have so far been cleared of the virus, according to the press statement issued by the Ethiopian public health institute.

The institute says six more suspected cases are now placed under isolation this week and their blood samples are sent to South Africa for further testing.

“But there are no confirmed cases both in Ethiopia and Africa,” said Dr. Ebba Abete, director-general of the institute at his regular presser to update the public the disease on Friday.

Most of the cases are travelers from China, he said, adding that, out the six suspect cases, one is a Chinese national.

All had entered into the country via Addis Ababa Bole International Airport in flights from China.

The issue has prompted the authorities to quarantine all passengers arriving at Bole Airport from Wuhan, according to EPHI.

Authorities say strict measures are put in place at the airport as well as training to staff of the airlines about the virus.

Officials also said they have expanded their surveillance checkpoints from Airports to border areas including Ethi0-Djibouti train station at Dire Dawa so as to prevent the possible entry of coronavirus from other countries.

Where Has it spread?

Globally, about 99% of the over 20,000 cases have been reported in China. Another 176 cases have been reported in 24 other countries and regions, according to the WHO.

At least 425 people have died in China, one person has died in Hong Kong and one person has died in the Philippines.

Thailand has the highest number of infections outside China with 25 confirmed cases and Singapore has 24.

It took the new coronavirus 48 days to infect the first 1,000 people. It took SARS 130 days to infect 1,000 people. It took MERS 2.5 years to infect 1,000 people.