The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Nigeria free from the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in October 2014. Barely a year later, fifteen people have been quarantined in Calabar, Cross River state. Those quarantined include one doctor, nine nurses, four health workers and one patient at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH).

The scare began as a reaction from a patient in UCTH who died from symptoms consistent with EVD.  However, the doctors are yet to come up with results from tests carried out on the quarantined individuals.

“On Wednesday October 7, 2015, we managed a patient who presented with symptoms mimicking viral hemorrhagic fever. Due to the remote chance of it being contagious, we have sent the blood samples for testing and quarantined identified contacts. Further information will be made available as soon as we receive the results of the samples sent for analysis,” said the Chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee of UCTH, Dr. Queeneth Kalu.

While Nigerians await the results, perhaps soothing is the fact that the country survived Ebola in 2015, which was one of the landmark achievements of the Jonathan administration. In addition, ZMapp, the experimental drug which can treat Ebola, was recently granted a ‘fast track’ designation.

Even though Ebola has made another appearance in the west African country, initial fears aside, it is unlikely that the virus, if detected, will spread beyond Cross Rivers state, especially if handled appropriately by the authorities and medical officials.

For more insight on Ebola’s emergence in Cross Rivers , listen to the podcast below: