Senegal has recorded its first case of Ebola in an outbreak that is ravaging its West African neighbors, the Ministry of Health said Friday. The infected person is a young man from Guinea, Health Minister Awa Marie Coll Seck told reporters.
The outbreak that has killed more than 1,500 people began last year in Guinea, which shares a border with Senegal. Since then, the disease has spread to Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. At least 3,000 people have contracted the virus.
The arrival of the disease in Senegal, whose capital Dakar is a major transportation hub for the region, is likely to increase fears about the disease's uncontrolled spread even further. The World Health Organization has warned that the outbreak is worsening and offered new evidence of its acceleration Friday, saying the past week has seen the highest increase of cases since the outbreak began and warning that the disease could eventually infect 20,000 people.
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-The Associated Press