GRAND BASSA – Citizens and residents of Grand Bassa County are reportedly panic-stricken, following news that an individual recently confirmed positive for being a carrier of the mpox virus, has escaped the center where he was isolated for observatory and treatment purposes.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that people with mpox remain in isolation for the duration of the illness, which typically lasts two to four weeks.
However, the CDC further recommends that if a person with mpox is unable to remain fully isolated throughout the illness, one should be mindful of several preventive measures including avoiding close or physical contact with animals as well as avoiding close or physical contact with other people including sexual and/or close intimate contact, cover the lesions on their skin, wear a well-fitting mask, and avoid public transportation when leaving the home as required for medical care or an emergency.
Grand Bassa County Health Officer (CHO), Dr. Jude Wesseh disclosed over the weekend that a 20-year-old male, who was recently observed to have been showing signs and symptoms of the virus, with his specimen collected, tested and confirmed positive on 10 October, has escaped his isolation center, at a local clinic, in Zondo electoral District #4, Grand Bassa County.
Despite frantic efforts on the part of medical personnel of the Grand Bassa County Health Team, who have since launched a search party for the escapee, Dr. Wesseh disclosed that the 20-year-old mpox patient’s whereabouts remain unknown, a situation that has reportedly instilled fear in citizens and residents of Grand Bassa, as well as others in nearby counties, who are expressing fear that should the runaway mpox patient cross over from Grand Bassa, there could be a possible outbreak of the virus in those areas.
The escape of the mpox patient (name withheld), who came down with the virus and began showing signs and symptoms on 27 September, is causing a stir among citizens and residents of Liberia’s west-central Grand Bassa County, with CHO Wesseh lamenting that the situation is a high risk and a one that presents an urgent public health concern.
Dr. Wesseh has called for members of the public to be on alert as health authorities, through the Incident Management System, in collaboration with the leadership of Grand Bassa County, apply all efforts aimed at tracing, locating, and returning the escaped mpox patient to a proper isolated area.
Meanwhile, this sudden and unexpected event has triggered a strong feeling of anxiety throughout Grand Bassa County and beyond, with reports of many now beginning to show signs of impulsive behavior.
Reports indicate that as panic ensues over the mpox patient’s whereabouts being unknown, there is currently a scramble among many as to how to respond to the perceived threats or uncertainty the man’s disappearance from the isolation center poses to public safety.
The mpox virus is transmitted to humans through close contact with an infected animal or person. Animal-to-human transmission typically occurs through bites, scratches, or direct contact with an infected animal’s blood, body fluids, or wounds.
For the second time since 2022, the WHO has declared mpox a global health emergency, with the virus currently fast-spreading across Africa with the likelihood of crossing over to other continents.
Edited by Olando Testimony Zeongar.
