The country of Mali has confirmed its first known case of the deadly Ebola virus, after a toddler was diagnosed with the hemorrhagic disease. The 2-year-old girl, who was being treated in a medical compound, has since died, according to the BBC.
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The girl reportedly traveled from Guinea with her grandmother in to Mali, after the girl’s mother died from Ebola. So far, the Mali government has isolated more than a dozen people who came in contact with the girl.
Still, it is feared that the toddler may have come in to contact with many more.
Watch a news report on the toddler bringing Ebola to Mali here:
Thus far, scientists are scrambling to introduce trials for a vaccine in to the West African region by December of this year, with data collecting completed by April of next year.
Therefore, it is projected that by the end of 2015, more than a million doses of the vaccine could be readily available.
“The vaccine is not the magic bullet, but when ready, it may be a good part of the effort to turn the tide of this epidemic,” said Word Health Organization Assistant Director-General Dr. Marie Paule Kieny.
Unfortunately, to date, the disease has ravaged Liberia, making orphans out of dozens of children.
Because of the circumstances of their parents’ deaths, the children’s extended family are often too afraid to provide them with shelter.
Thus far, Ebola has killed more than 4,800 across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone since March.
