1st Ebola case in W. African nation of Mali

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali has become the sixth nation in West Africa to report a case of Ebola.

Officials say Mali’s first case is a 2-year-old girl who came from neighboring Guinea, where the outbreak began last December. The child was tested for the virus yesterday in the town of Kayes, about 375 miles from the capital, Bamako. The country’s health minister says the child and those who came in contact with her are receiving care.

Like the reported case in Mali, neighboring Senegal also had an imported case from Guinea. Senegal and Nigeria, though, both have now been declared Ebola-free after no new cases emerged after 42 days.

The World Health Organization says the disease has killed at least 4,900 people and infected nearly 10,000.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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