A WOMAN THAT RECENTLY DIED OF EBOLA IN SIERRA LEONE,MAY HAVE INFECTED AT LEAST 27 PEOPLE AS PER TODAY.

                Today friday it was reported that a woman who died of Ebola this week in Sierra Leone potentially exposed at least 27 other people to the disease,raising the risk of more cases just as the deadliest epidemic on record appeared to be ending.Just a day earlier,the World Health Organization {WHO} had declared that all known chains of transmission have been stopped in West Africa,meaning that the region was officially free of the disease after a two year epidemic that killed more than 11,300 people.It warned however of potential flare-ups,as survivors can carry the virus fo months.The new case in Sierra Leone is especially disquieting because authorities failed to follow basic health protocols.The victim a 22 year old female named Mariatu Jalloh,began showing symptoms at the beginning of the year,though the exact date is unknown.The victim is a student in Port Loko,the largest town in Sierra Leone's Northern Province,Jalloh travelled to Bamoi Luma near the border with Guinea in late December.By the time she travelled back to her parent's home in Tonkololi district,east of the capital Freetown,using three different taxis,Jalloh had diarhea and was vomiting.She was nursed by members of a household of 22 people.She sought treatment at a local hospital on January * where a health worker,who did not wear protective clothing,took a blood sample.It was not immediately clear whether the sample was tested for Ebola.She was treated as an outpatient and returned home,where she died on January 12.Health workers took a swab test of Jalloh's body following her death,which tested positive for Ebola.The report stated that five people who were not part of Jalloh's parents household were involved in washing her corpse,a practice that is considered one of the chief modes of Ebola transmission.Almost all the victims of the regional epidemic,which originated in the forests of Guinea and Liberia.All three nations have been declared free of the virus at various times.