Ebola Spreading Outside Africa

[The Comish]

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/ebola-esca...191122070.html

Anyone else thinking this Ebola thing is just getting started? Sure, we're okay with it when it's in Africa, but now confirmed cases in Texas and Madrid, Spain should have us thinking about the spread of this brutally deadly illness. How can people leave the affected areas without going through a quarantine? Maybe they do, I don't know. And why are so man health care workers being infected? To be truthful, this has me worried deep down...I mean I'm not stockpiling weapons, well, no more than normal, but I can see this spreading rather quickly and it should be bigger news than ISIS or the start of the NHL season. Are we blissfully ignorant?

[austeane]

On one hand, pandemic movies have me going "yup, here we go!". On the other hand, the current epidemic has been a perfect storm. I don't think the chances of a sustained infection in a first-world country is likely. That said, it could still just be getting started and could end up being one of the worst ever in terms of deaths. Just for context, the Black Plague killed 70-200 Million people. The population of Nigeria is 180 Million, so for it to be a similar pandemic it would have to wipe out an entire country. If it gets a firm foothold in India though....

So, yes, it could be one of the worst pandemics ever, but I don't think it is going to be a world-ender.

[doulos]

Not worried in the slightest. It is ravaging areas of the world where they interact with dead bodies and believe that health care workers are trying to pull a fast one on them. Even marginal countries like Nigeria, which have massive populations, have shown that immediate and decisive crackdowns once Ebola shows up, can basically shut the disease down in that area. It's incredibly difficult to spread, and first world countries that take this seriously and have fantastic health care structures are going to have very little issues with Ebola.

Now, that doesn't mean we won't see massive deaths in countries like Liberia, and Sierra Leone if huge expenditures are not put into place right away, but the chances of it ever becoming a big deal in much of the rest of world is extremely, extremely small.

[NoWayOut]

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/ebola-esca...191122070.html

Anyone else thinking this Ebola thing is just getting started? Sure, we're okay with it when it's in Africa, but now confirmed cases in Texas and Madrid, Spain should have us thinking about the spread of this brutally deadly illness. How can people leave the affected areas without going through a quarantine? Maybe they do, I don't know. And why are so man health care workers being infected? To be truthful, this has me worried deep down...I mean I'm not stockpiling weapons, well, no more than normal, but I can see this spreading rather quickly and it should be bigger news than ISIS or the start of the NHL season. Are we blissfully ignorant?

Scary stuff for sure. I keep flashing back to the book 'The Hot Zone' every time this happens. That book can inspire some nightmares with the descriptions of what the disease does to the human body. Hopefully this strain is less devastating than some as far as the mortality rate goes.

The fact that so many health care workers are getting it really isn't a surprise. They are dealing with the infected at very close range. And though they take precautions to prevent contracting it all it takes is one small nick, a rip in clothing, or a split second lapse in attention to detail to catch it without realizing.

[Dutch]

if those stupid countries in Africa would use the money they get sent for humanitarian aid on the right stuff, they wouldn't be such a breeding grounds for diseases like these.

instead they choose weapons and other useless shit.

I don't think it will have major impacts in the western worlds.

[doulos]

A lot of it is cultural misunderstandings and superstition etc. Burial rites and the like. Not really about money.

[Loch]

Well... I'm off to Madagascar before it is too late!

(Pandemic 2 reference the uninitiated)


Seriously though, this isn't an airborne disease (yet!) so containment should be do-able... but that costs money soo...

[doulos]

Well... I'm off to Madagascar before it is too late!

(Pandemic 2 reference the uninitiated)


Seriously though, this isn't an airborne disease (yet!) so containment should be do-able... but that costs money soo...

The trick is to START it in Madagascar!

[beyondthewall19]

Agreed...if airborne then worried.