In an effort to curb the spread of Ebola, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has ordered an immediate lockdown and the imposition of a dusk-till-dawn curfew for three weeks in two districts.
For a period of 21 days, the two central areas of Mubende and Kassanda will be closed to business, including places of worship, markets, taverns, and entertainment.
“I now direct as follows: movements now into and out of Mubende and Kassanda districts are now prohibited,” said Museveni in a televised address on Saturday.
“If you are in Mubende and Kassanda districts, stay there for 21 days,” Museveni, who has ruled Uganda since 1986, said.
Since the epidemic was first reported on September 20, the health ministry stated on Saturday that there had been 19 fatalities and 58 confirmed cases of the sometimes lethal viral hemorrhagic fever.
Despite a husband and wife testing positive there, authorities claim that the outbreak is confined to the two afflicted districts and has not spread to Kampala, the 1.5 million people’s capital.
However, according to the president of Uganda, only cargo trucks will be permitted to access and exit the two locations; all other forms of transportation have been put on hold.
“These are temporary measures to control the spread of Ebola. We should all cooperate with authorities so we bring this outbreak to an end in the shortest possible time,” he added.
In september, Museveni had declared that there is no plan to impose restrictions in Ebola-prone areas in the central region because the viral disease is not airborne. As at then, at least 24 persons were infected by the virus in the country.
Museveni had already issued orders for police to detain anyone suspected of having the virus who refused to enter isolation and for traditional healers to stop treating sick persons.
The symptoms of Ebola, which is spread through bodily fluids, include fever, vomiting, bleeding, and diarrhea.
The most recent Ebola-related fatality in Uganda happened in 2019. The Sudan Ebola virus, for which there is presently no vaccine, is the specific strain that is now present in Uganda.
Clinical trials for medications to treat that strain could begin in the coming weeks, according to the World Health Organisation.