- Safiu Kehinde
The Benue State Government has declared Lassa fever outbreak in the state as death toll hit four with 56 suspected cases recorded while eight cases were confirmed positive.
The state’s Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Paul Ogwuche, disclosed this during a press conference on Tuesday.
Ogwuche, in his address, said that four out of the eight confirmed cases are healthcare professionals which include three nurses and one Community Health Worker.
The Commissioner explained that the 56 suspected Lassa Fever cases were recorded on the 31st January 2026.
He decried the impact of the outbreak on healthcare workers while analysing the death cases recorded so far.
The commissioner recalled the recent loss of a Benue-born medical doctor, who he said succumbed to Lassa Fever in the line of duty in Jos, Plateau State, where she was practicing.
“Out of these, eight (8) cases have been laboratory-confirmed, with three (3) deaths among confirmed cases and one (1) additional death classified as a probable case which brings the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) among confirmed cases to 37.5%.” Ogwuche said.
He said the outbreak underscores the heightened occupational risk faced by frontline health workers and the urgent need for strict adherence to Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) measures across all health facilities.
Meanwhile, the commissioner maintained that the declaration of the outbreak is not intended in any way to cause panic, but rather to serve as a call to action for both healthcare workers and the public to take preventive measures seriously and to seek early treatment.