Don’t touch your dead loved ones, health officials warn after mystery flu ‘targeting women and kids’ kills more than 140

GRIEVING families person been warned against touching their dormant loved ones arsenic a mystery flu-like disease continues to termination dozens.

An chartless corruption that causes flu-like symptoms has already killed 143 radical successful Congo, prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to motorboat an urgent probe.

People person been dying astatine an alarming complaint successful the Kwango state successful the southwest of the Democratic Republic of Congo, adjacent the borderline with Angola.

A section epidemiologist said that women and children were the astir severely affected by the disease.

In the days anterior to decease patients person been suffering precocious fever, terrible headaches, coughs and anaemia, according to a section wellness official.

Now the official, Apollinaire Yumba, has issued a disturbing informing to radical to debar touching the bodies of their dormant loved ones arsenic determination is simply a information of contamination.

He made a hopeless plea for aesculapian supplies and planetary assistance successful bid to woody with the unfolding crisis.

The lawman politician of Kwango, Remy Saki, said the 143 recorded deaths had occurred implicit conscionable 2 weeks successful November.

No information has been released connected the fig of patients that are suspected to person been infected oregon hospitalised successful the horrific outbreak.

Local officials person described however the sick are tragically dying astatine location due to the fact that determination is simply a deficiency of attraction disposable to combat the enigma killer.

They are hopeless for scientists to place precisely what the illness is truthful that it tin beryllium treated effectively.

Saki told AP connected Tuesday: ”A squad of epidemiological experts is expected successful the portion to instrumentality samples and place the problem.”

The WHO confirmed connected Tuesday it is alert of the dispersed of the enigma illness and has a squad connected the crushed responding to it.

Its researchers are moving with section wellness services to cod samples from infected radical for analysis.

A civilian nine leader, Cephorien Manzanza, said that the concern was "extremely worrying".

Manzanza told Reuters: “Panzi is simply a agrarian wellness zone, truthful determination is simply a occupation with the proviso of medicines.”

Congo is already battling an m-pox epidemic, with much than 47,000 suspected cases successful the country.

This question of the m-pox has killed implicit 1,000 radical successful the Central African Country, according to the WHO.

The slayer illness that causes legions each implicit the assemblage of the radical it infects dispersed rapidly on the eastbound borderline of DCR this year.

The existent m-pox outbreak is being driven by intersexual transmission, but determination is besides grounds it tin dispersed done skin-on-skin contact.

Global wellness experts warned earlier this twelvemonth that the cases successful Congo are being driven by the "most unsafe strain yet".