Monday, July 28, 2014

Bomb blast in a Church in Kano, Nigeria kills 5

A bomb attack on a Catholic church in northern Nigeria's main city of Kano killed five people and wounded eight on Sunday, a senior police officer said.

The bomber threw the bomb at worshippers on their way out of the church, police commissioner Adenrele Shinaba told Reuters.

Police cordoned off the scene.

In a separate attack, a female suicide bomber tried to attack police officers on the streets. She killed herself but only wounded to of them, Shinaba said.

Reuters

Related stories: Kaduna hit by two deadly explosions

Death toll of civilians killed in Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria this year reach 2,053

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Nigeria racing to contain ebola outbreak after virus kills Liberian in Lagos

Nigeria says it has put all entries into the country on red alert after confirming the death of a Liberian man who was carrying the Ebola virus.

The man died after arriving at Lagos airport on Tuesday, in the first Ebola case in Africa's most populous country.

Surveillance has been stepped up at all "airports, seaports and land borders", says Health Minister Onyebuchi Chukwu.

Since February, more than 660 people have died of Ebola in West Africa - the world's deadliest outbreak to date.

It began in southern Guinea and spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

'Contact avoided'
The Liberian man collapsed on arrival in Lagos last Sunday. He was taken from the airport to hospital, where he was put in quarantine.

Officials have identified the 40-year-old man as an employee of the Liberian government.

r Chukwu confirmed that the other passengers on board the flight had been traced and were being monitored.

The patient had "avoided contact with the general public" between the airport and the hospital, he said.

Health specialists have been deployed at all entry points into the country, he added.

The virus, which kills up to 90% of those infected, spreads through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids.

Patients have a better chance of survival if they receive treatment early.

Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage

Fatality rate can reach 90%

Incubation period is two to 21 days

There is no vaccine or cure

Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery

Fruit bats are considered to be the natural host of the virus

The red alert in Nigeria comes as Sierra Leone launches a hunt for a woman infected with Ebola, who was forcibly removed from hospital by her relatives.

The 32-year-old, who is the first registered Ebola case in the capital Freetown, was described by national radio as a "risk to all".

The Ebola cases in Sierra Leone are centred in the country's eastern districts of Kenema and Kailahun, just over the border from the Guekedou region of Guinea where the outbreak started.

Police said thousands of people joined a street protest in Kenema on Friday over the government's handling of the outbreak.

Earlier this week, it was announced that the doctor leading Sierra Leone's fight against Ebola was being treated for the virus.

On Thursday, the World Health Organization said that 219 people had died of Ebola in Sierra Leone.

BBC

Related story: Nigeria possibly has first ebola case

Friday, July 25, 2014

Female weightlifter wins Nigeria's first gold at the Commonwealth Games

India’s Sanjita Chanu won the gold with 173 points.

Team Nigeria on Thursday in Glasgow recorded its first medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games when Nkechi Opara won bronze in the women’s weightlifting 48 kg event.
Opara scored 70 in snatch; and 92 in clean and jerk for total 162 points.

India’s Sanjita Chanu won the gold with 173 points, while her compatriot, Saikhom Mirabai, won silver with 170 points.
The result placed Nigeria joint sixth with South Africa and New Zealand who also have one bronze medal each.

England was, however, leading on the medals table as at 6 p.m. on Thursday with seven medals, comprising three gold, two silver and two bronze.
They had earlier in the day pushed Australia into second place, with India in third place, and Canada and Scotland joint fourth.

The women’s 48 kg event was one of two in the weightlifting competition, which was one of many on the first day of competition at the games.
In the other weightlifting event, Nigeria’s Rasaq Tanimowo was in line for a gold medal as he was leading the pack in the competition before the final round of lifts.
The 2014 games, which got underway on Wednesday, will end on August 3.

Premium Times

Nigeria looking to keep Stephen Keshi as Super Eagles coach


 The Nigeria Football Federation has revealed it wants discussions with Stephen Keshi in the hope of persuading him to return as Super Eagles coach.

The development is a U-turn from the governing body after it allowed Keshi's contract to expire after the World Cup.
However, Nigeria's sports ministry is understood to feel Keshi has made" outrageous" demands over a new deal.
The 52-year-old led Nigeria to their third African title in 2013 and the last 16 at the World Cup in Brazil.

But his reign as coach was littered with problems over money, as he experienced a number of delays in receiving his salary, and issues around his control of team selection.
He has reportedly sought a new deal that would double his $30,000-a-month salary, ensure monies are paid upfront to avoid delays and also allow him to pick his staff.

Following a meeting of the NFF executive committee, the board "mandated the technical sub-committee to open channels of communication with Stephen Keshi with a view to extending his contract, as the NFF is still interested in working with him".
It added: "The technical sub-committee is to report back to the executive committee within one week."

Meanwhile, Nigeria's sports minister Tammy Danagogo says football officials in the country must put aside their differences for Nigeria to go beyond the round of 16 at the World Cup.
"The only way we can go beyond round of 16 is to ensure that the right things are done," he said.
"If [the round of 16] is a jinx we must break it. And it is by ensuring that the right things happen; by ensuring that NFF does not complain that the minister is disturbing them.

"It is by ensuring that club owners are not complaining against the NFF, it is by ensuring players and coaches are not complaining that NFF or club owners are short-changing them."

BBC

Related stories: Nigeria Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi steps down after 2-0 defeat to France in the 2014 FIFA World Cup

Nigeria Super Eagles refuse to train due to unpaid FIFA World Cup 2014 appearance fees

Nigeria possibly has first ebola case

A Liberian man has been taken to hospital in Nigeria after he developed sysmptoms of the deadly disease Ebola, which has killed hundreds in West Africa in the biggest recorded outbreak.

Nigerian officials said on Thursday that the man was being tested in Lagos, and it was not clear if he was infected with the disease, which has killed 660 people across Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone since an outbreak began in February.

If confirmed, the case would be the first on record in Nigeria, Africa's most populous state with a population of 170 million.

The 40-year-old Monrovia man arrived in Lagos on Sunday and was taken to hospital on Tuesday suffering from severe vomiting and diarrhoea, said Yewande Adesina, the special adviser on health for the Lagos state government.

"Results are still pending. Presently the patient's condition is stable and he is in recovery… The diarrhoea and vomiting have stopped. He is still under isolation."

A third laboratory outside Nigeria must also test the samples before a final determination on Ebola can be reached, Adesina said.

The patient travelled from the Liberian of Monrovia to Lagos via Togo's capital Lome.

The WHO has recorded more than 900 cases of Ebola in the epidemic that has raged across West Africa in recent months. Liberia has recorded 172 cases of the disease, including 105 deaths.

Aljazeera