Download The Ebola outbreak

Weekly News Archive
Name:
(
)
Date:
Class:
B2 level
Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. (20 marks)
No. of Word: 827
The Ebola outbreak
[1] The Ebola virus disease, better known as Ebola, is a severe infectious disease which can lead to death in
humans and animals. It was first found in 1976 in two African countries Sudan and the Democratic Republic
of Congo. The disease was named after the river near the village where it was discovered, the Ebola River.
38 years later, Ebola has once again become an outbreak in West African. By early January 2015, the disease
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has already killed more than 8000 people and infected more than 20,000 people.
[2] In December 2013, a two-year-old boy from South Guinea identified as ‘Patient Zero of the 2014 Ebola
Outbreaks in West Africa’ died. In February 2014, Ebola outbreak broke bout within Guinea. Within five
months, the disease spread to neighbouring countries Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
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[3] The reaction to Ebola was slow at first. It took nearly three months since the disease first spread in
Guinea for the Ministry of Health in Guinea and Médecins sans Frontières to be noticed of the epidemic. In
the meantime, Ebola continued to disperse in the West African region. On 1 August 2014, the World Health
Organization reported more than 1600 confirmed victims of Ebola and above 880 death cases in Guinea,
Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
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[4] In response to the urgent matter Ebola, on 5 August 2014, the World Bank allocated 200 million USD to
its emergency fund to help three West African countries Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to deal with the
Ebola outbreak. Very soon after this, on 8 August, the World Health Organization declared the disease as a
‘Public Health Emergency of International Concern’, inferring that Ebola might cause public health risks not
only in West Africa but also countries in other continents.
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[5] There has been no vaccine for Ebola since its first outbreak in 1976. Therefore, health authority was
concerned about the safety of the experimental Ebola drug ‘ZMapp’ when it was given to two American
patients infected with Ebola while working in Liberia –Kent Brantly, a doctor and Nancy Writebol, a
missionary. The drug worked and cured these two people. However, it was not a perfect treatment and a
Spanish Catholic priest who had taken ZMapp died in August 2014.
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[6] As the number of Ebola infected people showed no sign of decreasing, many countries implemented bans
or restrictions to citizens of the affected nations. Zambia and Ivory Coast banned all travellers from Ebola
affected countries, while the Kenya Airways suspended flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone. Moreover, it also
forbade passengers who passed through Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia to travel on its airlines. On 23
August 2014, Ivory Coast even closed its borders with Guinea and Liberia.
[7] The need for more Ebola vaccines has never been higher. Many countries have tried their hands on
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producing new drugs. Two experimental vaccines for Ebola were manufactured by British and Canadian
pharmaceuticals and expected to be available to the infected countries by early 2015. However, according to
the World Health Organization, the key measures for fighting against Ebola should include case management,
surveillance, contact tracing, safe burials and social mobilization.
[8] It is no doubt that Ebola is a dangerous disease that may result in death if the patients are left untreated.
However, a lot of American people are overreacting to it. A primary school teacher in Maine was put on 21
days’ leave because she stayed in a hotel in Dallas, ‘near’ the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, which
once stayed a patient who was killed by Ebola. How near is the teacher to the hospital? 10 miles or 16
kilometres! Similarly, a college 60 miles away from Dallas issued a rejection letter to a Nigerian student
whose country had Ebola victims. Another example of overreaction is to a middle school principal in
Mississippi, who went to a funeral in Africa. He was given a week of paid vacation when the children’s
parents knew about his trip. The thing is he went to Zambia, where there was not even one Ebola case. In
fact, there have been only eight people who had Ebola in the United States. The overreaction to it is really
unnecessary.
[9] While doctors and pharmacists are thinking of new ways to treat Ebola patients, what can we do to
protect ourselves from the disease? There are some precautions suggested by the Centres for Disease Control
and Prevention:

Practice careful hygiene. For example, wash your hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based
hand sanitizer and avoid contact with blood and body fluids.

Do not handle items that may have come in contact with an infected person’s blood or body fluids
(such as clothes, bedding, needles, and medical equipment).

Avoid funeral or burial rituals that require handling the body of someone who has died from Ebola.

Avoid contact with bats and nonhuman primates or blood, fluids, and raw meat prepared from these
animals.

Avoid facilities in West Africa where Ebola patients are being treated.
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Weekly News Archive
1. What is true about paragraph 1?
A. Ebola first appeared in all West African countries.
B. Ebola was named after a lake.
C. By early 2015, Ebola has killed more than 20,000 people.
A
B
C
D
D. Ebola is an infectious disease.
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2. Find a phrase in paragraph 1 that is synonymous to ‘very serious’.
3. Complete the following passage about the origin of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014. Use ONE
word to fill in each blank.
A (i) ____________ from South Guinea was identified as ‘Patient Zero of the 2014 Ebola Outbreaks in
West Africa’. He died on December 2013. The Ebola outbreak broke out within his (ii) ______________.
Less than (iii) ______________ months later, the disease spread to (iv) ______________ countries near
Guinea.
4. Read paragraph 3 and 4 and decide if the following statements are True, False or the information is Not
Given. Blacken ONE circle only for each statement.
marks)
i)
(5
It took months for the Ministry of Health in Guinea and Médecins sans
T

F

NG

Frontières to be noticed of the Ebola outbreak.
ii)
The reaction to Ebola was not fast at first.



iii)
The World Bank set up a fund to help all West African countries affected by



Ebola.
iv)
The US sent many doctors and volunteers to countries infected by Ebola to
help the patients.



v)
The World Health Organization warned about the possibility that Ebola could



be found in countries out of Africa.
5. According to paragraph 5, is the Ebola drug ‘ZMapp’ extremely effective in treating the patients?
Explain your answer.
6. In line 26, ‘suspended’ does not mean…
A. limited
B. put off
C. ceased
A
B
C
D




D. deferred
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7. What does ‘it’ in line 26 refer to?
8. According to paragraph 6, how did other countries respond to the nations with Ebola outbreak?
9. What are the key actions for combating Ebola, according to the World Health Organization?
10. List one example of how some American people over-reacted to the Ebola disease.
11. Who does ‘we’ (line 44) refer to?
A. the writer and his family
B. doctors and pharmacists
C. people who write for a living
A
B
C
D




D. the general public
12. Put the following events in the correct order by writing 1–5 in the boxes provided.
Event
Order (1–5)
The World Bank allocated 200 million USD to its emergency fund to help three West
African countries.
Médecins sans Frontières was noticed of the Ebola outbreak.
Ebola was discovered in Sudan.
Ebola killed 8000 people and infected more than 20,000 around the world.
Ivory Coast closed its borders with Guinea and Liberia.
13. Do you think that it is safe to travel to countries affected by Ebola? Explain your answer.
End of paper
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Weekly News Archive
The Ebola outbreak
Answer Key
1. D
2. severe (line 1)
3. i)
ii)
boy
country
iii) six
iv) three
4. i)
T (line 9-10)
ii) T (line 9)
iii) F (line 14-15)
iv) NG
v) T (line 16-18)
5. The drug is not extremely effective. Two patients were cured but one patient died despite using the drug.
6. A
7. Kenya Airways
8. Zambia and Ivory Coast banned all travellers from Ebola affected countries. Kenya suspended flights to
Liberia and Sierra Leone and forbade passengers who passed through Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia
to travel on its airlines. Ivory Coast closed its borders with Guinea and Liberia.
9. The key measures for fighting against Ebola should include case management, surveillance, contact
tracing, safe burials and social mobilization.
10. A college 60 miles away from Dallas issued a rejection letter to a Nigerian student whose country had
Ebola victims.
11. D
12. 3, 2, 1, 5, 4
13. Suggested answer:
It is safe to travel to countries affected by Ebola when one carries out protective measures such as
practicing careful hygiene, avoiding contact with bats and nonhuman primates or blood, fluids, and raw
meat prepared from these animals and avoiding facilities in West Africa where Ebola patients are being
treated.
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