The Rwandan Ministry of Health has reported that the Marburg epidemic is waning as there are more recoveries than victims of the Marburg virus disease (MVD), while urging vigilance as the disease is far from being eradicated.
Since September 27, Rwanda has been confronted with the Marburg virus. Initially, the virus was detected in the two largest hospitals in the capital Kigali, with victims mainly among medical staff.
Offering reassurance, the Minister of Health highlighted that the absence of stricter measures is attributed to the successful containment of the virus from spreading beyond healthcare settings.
"Where we had the first cases, it was health workers, doctors, but not all the staff, it was specific departments, and we saw a doctor and a colleague who worked very closely with him, and that's what we know so far. That's why we say there is no community transmission," stated Sabin Nsanzimana, Rwandan Minister of Health.
Since the virus was first detected in Rwanda, the country has received support from the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Brian Chirombo, the WHO representative in Rwanda, emphasized that travel and trade restrictions hold little significance in the current scenario.
"WHO advises against travel or trade restrictions with Rwanda, especially in the context of the ongoing Marburg epidemic. At present, these restrictions are ineffective and unnecessary to control the situation. They will not contain the risks of epidemic spread. Indeed, the measures already taken by the government and other partners to contain the outbreak are sufficient," explained Chirombo.
Since the outbreak of MVD in Rwanda on September 27, 62 people have been infected, 15 of them have died. The Ministry of Health indicates that Rwanda has not yet managed to identify the origin of the Marburg virus, specifying that it is focusing its efforts on limiting the virus's spread.
Rwandan health ministry reports waning of Marburg epidemic, urges continued vigilance
Bird protection stations near provincial borders in China have been strengthening patrolling and adopting technologies to ensure safe travel for migratory birds as the country poses to establish an extensive work mechanism covering major bird migratory routes across five provinces.
The cross-provincial work mechanism, involving Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Guangdong, and Guangxi, will help strengthen cooperation in fields like information sharing, joint law enforcement, technological cooperation and environmental conservation.
It marks the first attempt of China to increase protection for migratory birds by coordinating efforts from multiple provinces.
The work mechanism will also see stations be set near provincial border to monitor and protect migratory birds, with protective work like patrolling to be launched jointly.
Responsible for monitoring birds traveling along a 40-kilometer route, Nanfeng'ao Migratory Bird Protection Station in central China's Guidong County, Hunan Province, has been strengthening efforts to ensure safe travel for migratory birds entering the province from Jiangxi.
Xiong Fuliang, now in his 60s, has been working as a warden at the protection station since 2014. Patrolling the mountains in search for wounded migratory birds is a part of his job, he said, adding that the migratory season always keeps him busy.
"The wind is strong at night and if it rains, the birds get wet and they tend to clash with the trees and get wounded. If the weather is bad, we will immediately start our patrol to check if there are any wounded birds. If we find them, we will call the forest wardens at once," said Xiong.
As a veteran patroller, Xiong is capable of imitating various bird chirps, a skill that helps him locate wounded birds by stimulating their responses.
He is also able to identify the wounded or trapped birds simply by their chirps. With the techniques, Xiong has saved 13 birds over the recent years.
"The wounded migratory birds have little strength and their chirps sound different. The sounds made by the healthy ones are typically louder. The wounded ones make sounds like 'gu gu gu' and the healthy ones make sounds like 'gua gua gua'," said Xiong.
As mountainous as Nanfeng'ao is, human patrolling is hard to reach every corner of the region and since early this year local wardens have been using drones to improve their work.
"Because the drones are equipped with the night vision devices and the infrared thermal imagers, we use them to detect at night the places frequently visited by the bird hunters, especially the abandoned ones. We also use them to detect the places that are hard to reach. If any suspicious traces are detected, we will send personnel there," said Huang Yongfeng, a forest resource warden of Guidong Forestry Bureau.
Mountainous regions are preferred by migratory birds as airflows going up from the valley bottom help them fly with less efforts. Home to 22 mountains over 1800 meters above the sea level, and with three of them forming a perfect migratory route, Guidong is the staging post for almost all the migratory birds traveling from Inner Mongolia to south China.
"At this time of the year, we see numerous migratory birds flocking to Guidong. The rolling hills and continuous passes on their travel route form 'an aerial channel', and the migratory birds ride the rising airflow and complete their flights easily," said Peng Pengcheng, manager of Nanhua Management Station located in the Qiyunfeng National Forest Park.
Going forward, the four bird protection stations in Guidong and the other five in the wider Chenzhou City will coordinate their efforts to help birds migrate.
"Currently, Chenzhou has nine bird protection stations and four of them are located in Guidong, which are near the border between Hunan and Jiangxi. We will work to connect them and help the birds migrate from one stop to another," said Li Yinfang, staff of the wildlife protection section of Chenzhou Municipal Forestry Bureau.
China makes cross-regional efforts to ensure safe travel for migratory birds
