By Taryn Pedler Published: 11:50 EDT, 2 October 2024 | Updated: 12:20 EDT, 2 October 2024
Two passengers suspected of having the deadly Marburg virus have forced the closure of a major German station as fears that the highly infectious Ebola-like disease has reached Europe grow.Police cordoned off tracks seven and eight for several hours at Hamburg Station and travellers were cleared from platforms after emergency services in full protective suits boarded the ICE from Frankfurt.Local reports have stated that two passengers on board had apparently been infected with the deadly ‘eye-bleeding’ virus.One of the passengers is a man said to be a German medical student, 26, who boarded the ICE train to Hamburg with his girlfriend on Wednesday afternoon in Frankfurt.During the train ride, both developed flu-like symptoms. According to Bild, the student had previously arrived by plane directly from Rwanda where he had contact with a patient who doctors later diagnosed as being infected with the Marburg virus. The UK Government has issued warnings about an untreatable Ebola-like virus — which kills up to nine in 10 people it infects — that is currently spreading in Africa. Marburg, one of the deadliest pathogens ever discovered, has already killed 10 people in Rwanda, with around 300 people being monitored for suspected infection. Marburg virus, a relative of Ebola, causes people to bleed from their orifices and kills up to 9 in 10 of those infected. MVD has a mortality rate of up to 88 percent. There are currently no vaccines or treatments approved to treat the virusIn a statement, UK health chiefs demanded that businesses provide extra monitoring of employees visiting the African nation. The World Health Organization (WHO) has previously described the situation as of ‘great concern’, adding there is high risk of the outbreak spreading to other African countries.Last year, an outbreak of the virus — which causes sufferers to bleed from the eyes — tool hold in nearby Tanzania. More follows.
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Passengers suspected of having deadly ‘eye-bleeding’ Marburg virus force closure of major German station