GUINEA: Yellow fever continues to claim many lives

ABIDJAN, 24 November (IRIN) - At least 88 people have died from yellow fever
in an unusual outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease in central Guinea.

The epidemic is centred in the area of Mamou, about 200 km east of the
capital, Conakry, a doctor with the World Health Organisation (WHO) in
Conakry told IRIN on Friday.

He said medical workers had already vaccinated 100,000 people in Mamou and
aimed to innoculate nearly 200,000 more in the short term. The population is
also receiving information about the disease and on the use of mosquito
nets.

The doctor said it was the first yellow fever outbreak of such severity in
the region and an investigation was underway. He attributed the outbreak to
large population movements and changing ecology.

There have also been yellow fever outbreaks in neighbouring Liberia and
Sierra Leone this year. All three countries are characterized by
instability, high numbers of internally displaced persons or refugees and
environmental degradation. The city of Mamou is located about 30 km north of
the border with Sierra Leone, where hundreds of thousands of refugees are
camped.