Lassa fever kills 12 people in Ondo, 112 cases confirmed

Ondo State Government has confirmed that no fewer than 12 people have died from Lassa fever, with 112 confirmed cases and 353 reported infections. The Statistician-General of the state, Olusola Ajayi, who disclosed this, yesterday, described the situation as alarming, urging workers of the state waste management authority to step up their game in ensuring cleanliness of the state.

Ajayi also appealed to the waste management officials to collaborate with other stakeholders in the health sector towards ensuring a healthy environment to reduce the menace. He said: “We are together in that business. We have to act fast now because of this data that I am going to give you.

“In Ondo State today, there are 353 cases of Lassa fever. 112 have been confirmed. 12 people have died. So, if we want to act, the time is now.” The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr Adeniran Ikuomola, had last week stated that the state recorded close to 400 suspected cases of Lassa fever since its recent outbreak and over 100 cases, saying: “We have 400 suspected cases and confirmed 100. I would have loved to give you a specific number of deaths. We have recorded some deaths.”

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed 143 cases of Lassa fever out of the 484 suspected cases from December 30, 2024, to January 12, 2025, in seven states across 32 local councils.

The Centre equally reported 22 deaths with a case fatality rate of 15.4 per cent.