African health official: Ebola in Uganda is under control

Uganda’s Ebola outbreak is under control, a top public health official in Africa said Thursday, noting that local health authorities are doing well to trace most contacts.
“The situation is not getting out of control,” said Dr. Ahmed Ogwell, acting director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “We have good visibility of all the contacts.”
About 98 percent of 2,694 documented contacts — people exposed to Ebola by a confirmed patient — are being monitored, Ogwell said, adding that it “gives comfort that we know the evolution of this particular outbreak.”
Tracing contacts is key to stemming the spread of contagious diseases like Ebola.
Uganda declared an outbreak of the Sudan strain of Ebola on Sept. 20. The epicenter is a rural community in central Uganda about 150 kilometers (93 miles) from the capital, Kampala.