Liberia Declared Ebola-Free By WHO For Second Time In 6 Months

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Liberia free of the Ebola virus for a second time Thursday. The announcement came 42 days after the last confirmed case in the West African nation tested negative in June.

In May, the WHO had declared the country free of the virus, but it recurred in July with two confirmed cases. The Ebola outbreak in the world was first recorded in December 2013. Over 27,860 people in the African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone were affected and about 11,281 died. Of these, more than 4,800 deaths were recorded in Liberia.

“WHO commends the Government of Liberia and its people on the successful response to this recent re-emergence. It is in full accord with government calls for sustained vigilance. It will continue to support the country during the 90 days of heightened surveillance that begins 3 September 2015, and in its early recovery efforts,” the WHO said in a statement.

In August, the WHO said that Ebola survivors suffered from chronic conditions such as eye problems and joint pain, calling it "an emergency within an emergency."

On Sunday, officials in Sierra Leone said that a 67-year-old woman in the Kambia district in the northern province died of Ebola, less than a week after the last Ebola patient in the country was discharged from hospital.