Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 21
By Ilhame Isabalayeva - Trend:
The Ebola virus can not enter Azerbaijan via bananas imported from Africa, the Deputy Director of the State Anti-Plague Station at Azerbaijani Health Ministry Shair Gurbanov told Trend Oct. 21.
He said the citizens are concerned over the possibility of the Ebola virus' penetration into Azerbaijan not only from imported bananas, but also from coffee; however all this is impossible.
The Ebola virus can't enter into Azerbaijan with imported fruits, according to Yaqub Ibrahimov, the Head of the Toxicology Laboratory of the State Phytosanitary Control Service of Azerbaijan.
Ibrahimov said the laboratory thoroughly checks the imported bananas for the presence of fertilizers and heavy metals, and, if they do not conform to certain standards, the bananas don't go into the country's trade network.
He also said that in general the bananas are very useful for human health.
Ebola virus is rapidly spreading in West Africa, namely in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Nigeria, Congo and Senegal. The cases of Ebola infection have been registered in the US, Spain, Norway, Australia and other countries as well.
The World Heath Organization (WHO) reports 4,033 people have died so far, with 8,399 probable or suspected cases. However in reality, this number could be much higher due to under reporting of the disease.
The US Center for Disease Control claims cases in Liberia are doubling every 15-20 days while those in Sierra Leone are doubling every 30-40 days.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also estimate Liberia and Sierra Leone could see 1.4 million cases of Ebola within three months when under-reported cases are taken into account.
Edited by CN