According to the World Health Organization, the deadly outbreak of the plague in Madagascar has reached a ‘crisis point’ after at least 127 deaths have been reported.
Cases of the new fatal strain of pneumonic plague have skyrocketed by more than 30% in just the last few days.
And epidemiologists are now sounding the alarm as the contagion is transferred merely by coughing and sneezing.
According to one expert, “it’s just a plane ride away from moving to the developed world.”
We’re not alarmists, but this isn’t pretty.
It’s a symptom of the global world in which any regional health disaster can go worldwide in a matter of days.
We’re keeping an eye on it.
Here’s more from Daily Mail…
The deadly airborne plague spreading rapidly across Madagascar is now at ‘crisis’ point as cases have rocketed by 37 per cent in just five days, official figures reveal.
The outbreak, the ‘worst in 50 years’, is being fueled by a strain more lethal than the one which usually strikes the country off the coast of Africa.
The World Health Organization (WHO) now states there are 1,801 suspected cases – significantly higher than the 1,309 it reported last Thursday.
Academics have revealed such a jump in cases over the period of five days is concerning and have predicted it could get worse. The most recent statistics show there have been 127 deaths.
Professor Robin May, an infectious diseases expert at Birmingham University, told MailOnline that ‘whichever way you look’ at the outbreak, it’s ‘concerning definitely’.
Analysis of figures by MailOnline show the epidemic could strike a further 20,000 people in just a matter of weeks, if current trends continue. It could be made worse by crowds gathering for an annual celebration to honour the dead earlier this week.
The ‘truly unprecedented’ outbreak has prompted warnings in nine nearby countries – South Africa, Seychelles, La Reunion, Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Comoros and Mauritius.
Two thirds of this year’s cases have been caused by the airborne pneumonic plague and means it is spread through coughing, sneezing or spitting. It is different to the traditional bubonic form that strikes the country each year.
