Epidemic hazard

Rwanda says that eight people have died so far from the highly contagious Marburg virus. The announcement comes just days after the country declared an outbreak of the deadly hemorrhagic fever that has no authorized vaccine or treatment. Like Ebola, the Marburg virus originates in fruit bats and spreads between people through close contact with the bodily fluids of infected individuals. Rwanda, a landlocked country in central Africa, declared an outbreak on Friday and a day later the first six deaths were reported. Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana said on Sunday night that so far, 26 cases have been confirmed, and eight of the sickened people have died.