Six students die of yellow fever in Bauchi

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has confirmed four cases of yellow fever in Bauchi state.

In a statement on Friday, the NCDC said at least seven deaths — including six students — related to the outbreak have been confirmed.

The statement signed by Chikwe Ihekweazu, NCDC director-general, said three of the confirmed cases are residents of Alkaleri local government area while the fourth case is a tourist who had visited the Yankari Games Reserve in the same area.

“NCDC was first notified on the 29th of August, when we received the report of a confirmed case of Yellow Fever in Kano State from a laboratory in our Yellow Fever laboratory network,” the statement read.

“Subsequent investigations led by the Kano State Epidemiology Team established that this confirmed case of yellow fever was from a patient who visited the Yankari Game Reserve in Bauchi, in August 2019 with his father. Unfortunately, the father died with similar symptoms before a sample could be collected and tested.

“Subsequently, on the 3rd of September 2019, the Borno State Epidemiology Team reported deaths among students of Waka College of Education in Biu LGA Borno State.

“These students visited the Yankari Game Resort in August 2019. Of the 95 Students that visited the resort, eight of them developed symptoms and six had died as at the time of the report. The others are in a stable condition. Samples from these cases are being tested.

“Altogether, we can confirm four cases of yellow fever in people that either live or have visited Bauchi in the last one month.”

Ihekweazu said the organisation has among other things deployed a rapid response team to support Bauchi state to carry out further in-depth investigations over the outbreak.

“Samples of the other suspected cases from Bauchi and Borno states are currently being transported to the NCDC National Reference Laboratory in Abuja for further testing,” he added.