Two years ago, the worst outbreak of Ebola in history began. The epidemic claimed over 11,000 lives in West Africa, but has been declared officially over by World Health Organization (WHO). This marks the first time since the ebola outbreak began that the three primary nations wracked by the disease have simultaneously had zero reported cases for the mandated period of time. The WHO has warned that despite this good news, it’s unlikely to be the end of Ebola. More flare-ups are expected.
The announcement has come after Liberia, the final country still having reported cases of ebola, made it through the required 42 days without another diagnosis. The period of 42 days is twice that of ebola’s incubation period (the time between contraction of disease and symptoms showing). This is the third time Liberia has hit zero, but subsequent infections occurred in the following weeks. Today marks the first time that Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone have all been free of the disease at the same time and any new cases are now officially considered not a part of the original outbreak.