TheCable

Governor of Delta state, Emmanuel Uduaghan, has announced seven hospitals designated as isolation centres for identified cases of Ebola in the state.

Speaking at a meeting of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders in the Delta north and Delta south senatorial zones in Asaba, Uduaghan said he would not wait until Ebola cases are unearthed in the state before taking precautionary measures.

“We have designated seven hospitals in the state as isolation centres where any suspected case will be managed,” he said.

“Every local government area has a contact person and there is a contact phone number (32815) where messages (SMS) can be sent to report any suspected case in the state.”

Uduaghan said his government had also set up a committee to educate and sensitise the people about the prevention and management of the virus.

He said the committee, which comprises the commissioners in the ministries of health, information and environment, had been inaugurated and would brief the public about the measures already taken to ensure that the virus did not get into the state.

“There is no Ebola virus in Delta state and it will not come to the state. We are doing everything possible to deal with the scourge,” he added.

“We have set up an inter-ministerial committee comprising the commissioners for health, environment and information to sensitise and brief the people on the measures in place to tackle any outbreak in the state.”

He urged politicians to take the message to the nooks and crannies of the local government areas in the state to sensitise the people on how to maintain personal hygiene and to regularly wash their hands.

He also cautioned those whose relatives are in any of the West African countries where Ebola had been reported and who need to bring in any corpse from those countries to alert the state so that the cause of the death can be ascertained.