Ibba reports 5,000 returnees fleeing Ebola fears in DRC

Authorities in Ibba County say the number of returnees arriving from neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has exceeded 5,000 as people flee concerns over an Ebola outbreak in the neighbouring country. The caretaker commissioner of Ibba County, Tito Amos Nganzi, said many of the arrivals had settled in the Nabanga area. Nganzi said local authorities, the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) and non-governmental organizations were coordinating efforts to assist the new arrivals, but the available support remained inadequate. He said the returnees urgently needed food, shelter and medical supplies.

“To tell the truth, we have not given them something that can help them that much. Their situation actually is dire because they don’t have food, they don’t have shelter, and also medicine, and many others. So, there is need to support them as they are trying to settle within the communities in Nabanga,” Nganzi said. The commissioner said the arrivals began gradually in July and increased between July and August, with more than 5,000 people reported to have entered the county. Authorities say the returnees and Congolese nationals fled areas affected by the Ebola outbreak in the neighbouring country. Kamal El-din Bashir, the head of Ebola task force said the new arrivals have being screened to help…