WHO: West Africa free from Ebola, for now

The World Health Organization on Thursday declared the end of Ebola in Sierra Leone, with no known cases of the disease remaining in West Africa.

“Today marks another milestone in the country’s effort to defeat Ebola,” the health arm of the United Nations wrote in a statement Thursday.

{mosads}There are now no remaining cases of Ebola in all of West Africa, though health officials warned that future cases are likely.

“Sierra Leone, as well as Liberia and Guinea, are still at risk of Ebola flare-ups, largely due to virus persistence in some survivors, and must remain on high alert and ready to respond,” the WHO wrote in its statement.

Sierra Leone is one of three countries in West Africa that have together lost more than 11,000 people during the two-year epidemic.

The last case of Ebola was found in Sierra Leone in January, just one day after the WHO had declared the end of the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.