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Congolese residents of Goma arrive in Rwanda Sunday after fleeing from Mount Nyiragongo volcano as it erupted over Goma. Photo by Eugene Uwimana/EPA-EFE

Congolese residents of Goma arrive in Rwand Sunday after fleeing from Mount Nyiragongo volcano as it erupted over Goma Saturday. Photo by Eugene Uwimana/EPA-EFE

May 25 (UPI) — The search continued Tuesday for more than 100 children missing since the Mount Nyiragongo volcano eruption in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Mount Nyiragongo volcano in the eastern DRC erupted Saturday evening, with the lava flowing through the northern district of Goma, flattening hundreds of homes and killing more than 30 people, according to the BBC’s latest death toll.

The destruction has left parents desperately searching through the rubble for their missing children while the Red Cross and government officials try to reunite families, the BBC reported Tuesday.

The United Nations children’s agency, UNICEF, said in a statement Sunday more than 170 children were feared to be missing with 150 of them separated from their families as thousands who had been evacuated returned to the DRC amid concern their homes would be damaged and utilities disrupted.

Meanwhile, a 5.3-magnitude earthquake was among a series of quakes to hit western Rwanda’s Rubavu district bordering the east DRC Tuesday morning where Congolese residents had fled to escape the Mount Nyiragongo volcanic eruption in Goma, Xinhua reported.

The earthquakes have ripped through houses, schools, and several roads, Rubava Mayor Gilbert Habyarimana told Xinhua, prompting several families to flee their homes out of fear they could cave in on them if there is a major earthquake.

The Mount Nyiragongo volcano is one of the largest in the world. Saturday’s eruption was the last large eruption since a 2002 eruption that killed 250 people and displaced thousands, CNN reported.

Source: https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2021/05/25/Democratic-Republic-of-Congo-Goma-volcano-children-missing-Rwanda-earthquakes/1501621970191/?ur3=1

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The overall death rate of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa may have been underestimated, with new research finding survivors could have a five times higher death rate after leaving the hospital than the general population.

An outbreak of Ebola is currently raging in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where more than 3,000 cases of the viral disease have occurred over the past year, including more than 2,000 deaths.

The new study focuses on 1,130 Guinean survivors of the 2013-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the largest such outbreak ever recorded. These patients were tracked from early December 2015 to the end of September 2016. During that time, 59 died in the first year after hospital discharge.

That 5.2 percent death rate was five times higher than what would be expected in the general Guinean population, according to the study. It was published Sept. 4 in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal.

“Our findings highlight the need to strengthen Ebola survivor programs, particularly as the number of people surviving the infection are increasing,” study author Dr. Ibrahima Soce Fall said in a journal news release.

Fall is the World Health Organization’s assistant director-general for emergency response.

Of the 59 deaths, 37 were initially attributed to kidney failure based on symptoms reported by family members.

There was a lack of documentation or autopsies available to rule out other causes of death, according to the study authors. They called for more research to determine if kidney failure is a common long-term effect of Ebola in survivors.

Fall and his colleagues also said their study confirms that Ebola survivors’ health is highly vulnerable, particularly among those who had prolonged forms of the disease. They said the research suggests that the reported overall death rate for Ebola may have been low.

One of the researchers, Judith Glynn, said the results could “help to guide current and future survivors’ programs and the prioritization of funds in resource-constrained settings.”

For example, “those hospitalized with Ebola for longer may be at greater risk, and could be specifically targeted,” added Glynn, a professor at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in England.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on Ebola.

Source: https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2019/09/05/Ebola-survivors-face-increased-risk-of-death/8191567695114/?sl=1&ur3=

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While the CDC has assured us that we don’t need to worry about Ebola here in the United States, at the same time, it seems that the government is quietly hiring people to screen for the disease at an American airport. It’s certainly not impossible that Ebola could spread to the United States. After all, the World Health Organization did declare the DRC Ebola outbreak an international emergency.

Although they are no longer taking applications, three weeks ago Caduceus Healthcare posted the following ad seeking “entry-level” employees for Dulles International Airport, just outside of Washington, DC.

To screen passengers that have traveled back from Ebola affected nations. This will include checking vital signs, temperature and having passengers fill out questionnaires. This will include tracking and reporting all recovered results.

• Have a current and unrestricted EMT License
• Current BLS
• Must be a US citizen or Green Card holder

Here’s a screenshot of the advertisement just in case it gets memory-holed because we all know how that goes.

It’s important to understand how viruses like Ebola can turn into pandemics. Here’s a hypothetical example.

Is this for real?

The Epoch Times contacted Caduceus Healthcare and spoke to an official at the company.

“We’re a contractor with the federal government; we saw a proposal that came out looking for MPs, PAs, and public health advisers to be at a couple of main hubs at airports,” Jared Beuther, an official at Caduceus Healthcare, told The Epoch Times.“The federal government put out a proposal bid because our company has worked closely with the CDC before and then emergency response, being able to provide them physicians.”“The proposal went out last week, before that they were just reaching out to see if any companies were interested in that position,” Beuther noted. (source)

You know, just casually checking travelers for a deadly hemorrhagic disease. No biggie.

It isn’t just isolated to Washington DC, either.

In the Epoch Times’ very thorough report, they discovered that the Los Angeles Public Department of Health is also looking for someone to handle a potential Ebola outbreak.

The Program Specialist (PS), Public Health Nurse (PHN) in the Hospital Outbreak and Biothreat Response Unit, under the direction of the ACDC physician, will be responsible for leading all components of outbreak investigations that occur in the acute care hospital setting, providing recommendations for outbreak control, and follow-up of infection prevention measures implemented to prevent further disease transmission.Essential Job Functions

• Oversee all aspects of outbreak investigations that occur in the acute care hospital setting.
• Coordinate, direct and manage activities for outbreak investigations, including collecting, organizing, and interpreting clinical and laboratory data, leading site visits, and coordinating laboratory specimens and environmental sampling.
• Develop and write recommendations, letters, and comprehensive investigation reports for outbreak control to facilities.
• Prepare reports summarizing investigations, surveillance trends within Los Angeles County, and other correspondence as needed.
• Lead meetings with facilities and provide technical expertise on communicable disease issues such as healthcare-associated infections (HAI), infection control, multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs), medical device-associated infections, contaminated products, and emerging infectious diseases to healthcare personnel.
• Collaborate and consult with professional organizations and local, state and federal government agencies, such as the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), Health Facilities Licensing and Certification, California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• Develop and update hospital outbreak investigation policies and procedures and infection prevention and control guidelines based on healthcare community standards of practice, established outbreak investigation activities and the Public Health Nursing Practice Model.
• Participate in local, state and national committees that support control and prevention of hospital outbreaks.
• Support outbreak prevention and control activities in acute care facilities
• Directly supervise an Assistant Program Specialist (APS) and provide cross-coverage for biothreat responses (e.g. Ebola, anthrax, botulism, smallpox).

Requirements Must currently be a permanent Los Angeles County employee who holds the payroll item of Program Specialist, Public Health Nurse.  (source)

And of course, here’s another screenshot for the inevitable moment when they take down the post and a bunch of people start screaming in the comments that I made this up.

New York City is likewise concerned.

The Epoch Times reports:

New York City and state health departments carried out a full Ebola drill on April 30 with a mock Ebola patient, noting in a press release, “Given the current outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is the second-largest Ebola outbreak in history with over 1,100 confirmed cases and 700 deaths, it is critical that the healthcare system is prepared to handle an actual case of Ebola or other infectious disease threat. Despite this critical need for readiness, federal funding for Ebola preparedness is set to expire in 2020, placing the future of these emergency response capabilities in jeopardy.”New York carried out its drill a full month before 13 African migrant families that crossed the U.S. southern border moved permanently to New York City. (source)

And there seems to be a trend of drills happening right before the real thing happens, doesn’t there?

How worried should we be?

Honestly, I’m surprised they haven’t done this sooner. Ever since the last Ebola scare, I’ve been troubled by the apparent lack of concern about these types of deadly diseases being passed on by travelers.

At this time, there are no active cases of Ebola in the United States of which we know. There have been some concerning stories about migrant families from Ebola-prone regions crossing our Southern border without much in the way of medical assessment, however, and at this time, I’ve only seen evidence of Dulles International looking for medical professionals to assess travelers for potential Ebola.

But before you panic and go into lockdown, you should understand that at this point, right now, today as I am writing this article, the current Ebola outbreak has been found mostly in the Democratic Republic of Congo with a small handful of cases in Uganda.

This doesn’t mean it could never happen here but it means, for now, things are okay. It would be wise to compare your preps to this article about pandemic readiness and invest in this excellent book, Prepping for a Pandemic.  As well, check out my book, Be Ready For Anything, which has some specific pandemic recommendations as well as general preparedness advice. This is one of those things that could happen suddenly but may never happen at all.

However, when the government becomes publicly concerned, I always pay a little more attention and wonder what they know that we do not.

Source: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-09-03/why-federal-govt-hiring-ebola-airport-screeners

The post Why Is The Federal Govt. Hiring “Ebola Airport Screeners?” first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Valerie, a Congolese woman, fled her war-torn country with her family and is now trying to create a new life here.

“We left the Congo because there weren’t any resources for us…my son has really liked it here. I’ve liked it here, as well. It’s for this reason I’ve come here to figure out my life, to improve my life,” she said in French.

BORDER ARRESTS SKYROCKET IN MAY, AS OFFICIALS DECLARE “FULL-BLOWN” EMERGENCY

Many of the migrants stayed at Travis Park Church in downtown San Antonio before heading to different cities across the country.  (Fox News)

Valerie is one of hundreds of African migrants who arrived in San Antonio last week. City leaders said they weren’t given a heads up and quickly scrambled to accommodate them and quickly recruit several French-speaking volunteers who could serve as translators.

“The City of San Antonio has received more than 200 individuals, mostly families and children. The families were released by the United States Customs and Border Patrol into the country with paperwork directing them to Portland, Maine,” said Interim Assistant City Manager Dr. Colleen Bridger.

The majority of them stayed at Travis Park Church, which regularly hosts asylum seekers.

“I’m not necessarily surprised…we react to changes on the border every day, we just had to figure out that process it didn’t really shake us up too much,” said Gavin Rogers, associate pastor.

It’s not just Congolese migrants arriving in alarming numbers. Border Patrol agents reported arresting more than 500 people from Africa since May 30. The group included nationals from Angola, Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Border Patrol agents in the Del Rio Sector say they’ve arrested more than 500 migrants from Africa since the end of May. (Border Patrol)

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While Border Patrol has previously seen migrants from Africa, this is the first time they have seen such a large group crossing together.

“It really has been a bit of an anomaly for us,” said Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Raul Ortiz. “I think most of them, you know, obviously are flying to different locations. And then, when they find themselves congregating in a location then they start to formulate a plan just south of the U.S. Mexican border here.”

For years, people from the Congo and neighboring countries have fled to escape political instability and violence. According to the UN Refugee Agency, 4.5 million people from the DRC have been displaced. But the numbers seem to be increasing and officials in border towns are struggling to keep up.

“Some [refugees] may have been traveling for months to get to the Mexico border in search of better opportunities that the U.S. has to offer, the human rights that the U.S. has to offer,” Bonita Sharma, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio’s College of Public Policy, told The Rivard Report.

Unlike most Mexicans and Central Americans, many of the migrants from Africa don’t have roots in America or families who can take them in once they are released from immigration detention. And many speak languages the immigration officials do not.

“Quite often, the individuals from the African continent do not have a permanent address or a sponsor already in the U.S. And so you really just have to pinpoint an immigration court near where they think they are going to ultimately end up and hope that they report themselves in,” said Ortiz.

FOOTAGE SHOWS MIGRANTS WALKING AROUND BORDER WALL TO ENTER US

The city says it will continue to work with Travis Park Church, Catholic Charities, and other non-profit organizations to find long-term resources for these migrants.  (Fox News)

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TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CUTS REFUGEE ADMISSIONS TO 30,000

Over the weekend, the city, along with Catholic Charities, worked with the asylum seekers to figure out their next destination as many arrived without designated host families and cities.

“If we don’t know exactly the best place to send the migrant community like the Congolese. We have to figure out what shelters are available around the nation, where’s the best place for their community to go,” said Rogers.

There was also concern that some of the migrants could carry diseases, as there is currently an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

However, Bridger quickly shut down those rumors, telling local reporters that the migrants go through multiple health screenings.

“It’s a 21-day incubation period so it’s really not possible that, if they were exposed to Ebola in the DRC, that now, six months later, they develop symptoms and infect us,” Bridger said.

By Monday, the majority of the migrants had left on buses, heading to cities where they may have friends or family members. The line outside the city’s Migrant Resource Center downtown had dwindled.

But, if more come, Rogers said they’ll be ready.

“We’re a church always willing to serve our neighbors,” Rogers said. “We’ll continue to do so whether that’s with migrants or the homeless or a new need that will crop up in the future.”

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Global health teams have issued the warning as they battle to contain what is already the world’s second largest Ebola epidemic. Infectious disease expert Jeremy Farrar said fostering confidence in health authorities is essential when fighting a disease that can spread furiously through communities where local services are scant and patients are often scared to come forward to government or international response teams. Mr Farrar, who recently visited the central African country with a World Health Organization (WHO) leadership team, said: “When you have political instability, public health always suffers.”

Without public trust, he said, the Congo epidemic could kill many hundreds more people.

The December 30 election was meant to mark Congo’s first uncontested democratic transfer of power after 18 years of chaotic rule by President Joseph Kabila.

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Pope Francis begged for peace for “the entire world”, beginning with Syria (Reuters)

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis, in his Easter address on Sunday, called for peace in the Holy Land two days after 15 Palestinians were killed on the Israeli-Gaza border, saying the conflict there “does not spare the defenceless”.

The pope made his appeal in his “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) message from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica to tens of thousands of people in the flower-bedecked square below where he earlier celebrated a Mass.

Francis appeared to refer directly to the Gaza violence last Friday, calling for “reconciliation for the Holy Land, also experiencing in these days the wounds of ongoing conflict that do not spare the defenceless.”

Pope Francis called for international assistance for Venezuela (Reuters)

Israel’s defence minister has rejected calls for an inquiry into the killings by the military during a Palestinian demonstration that turned violent at the Gaza-Israel border.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, and other leaders have called for an independent investigation into the bloodshed.

The Pope also begged for peace for “the entire world, beginning with the beloved and long-suffering land of Syria, whose people are worn down by an apparently endless war.”

“This Easter, may the light of the risen Christ illumine the consciences of all political and military leaders, so that a swift end may be brought to the carnage in course … ” he said.

He spoke a day after the Syrian army command said it had regained most of the towns and villages in eastern Ghouta. Tens of thousands of people have now evacuated once-bustling towns in the suburbs east of the capital, which had nearly 2 million people before the start of the conflict and were major commercial and industrial hubs.

The Pope urged his listeners to work for an end to the “so many acts of injustice” in the world (Reuters)

Francis called for international assistance for Venezuela, so that more people would not have to abandon their homeland because of the economic and political crisis.

He hoped the “fruits of dialogue” would advance peace and harmony on the Korean peninsula, where the two sides are set to hold their first summit in more than a decade on April 27, after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pledged his commitment to denuclearisation.

Francis, celebrating his sixth Easter as Roman Catholic leader since his election in 2013, urged his listeners to work for an end to the “so many acts of injustice” in the world.

He prayed the power of Jesus’ message “bears fruits of hope and dignity where there are deprivation and exclusion, hunger and unemployment, where there are migrants and refugees – so often rejected by today’s culture of waste – and victims of the drug trade, human trafficking and contemporary forms of slavery”.

Source: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/pope-francis-easter-message-pope-after-gaza-violence-says-defenceless-being-killed-in-holy-land-1831395

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