Ebola Virus: First Suspected Victim In Lagos Cremated.

The body of the first victim of Ebola Virus Disease in Nigeria,   who died in Lagos on Friday, has been cremated.

The cremation process was witnessed by officials of the Lagos State Ministry of Health and the  Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, led by its Project Director, Professor Abdulsalam Nasidi, among others.

The World Health Organisation recommends that in communities where there is an outbreak of Ebola, appropriate containment measures including burial of the dead should be properly handled.

While stating that people who die from Ebola should be promptly and safely buried, WHO? notes that cremation,    which is the application of high temperature to reduce bodies to basic chemical components (ashes),?  is ideal for safe disposal of bodies of persons who die during outbreaks of highly infectious diseases such as Ebola Virus in order to minimise further transmission.

In 2013 the Lagos State Government introduced its Voluntary Cremation Law under which  a person may signify interest to be cremated at death or a deceased’s family members who must attain the age of 18 years, can decide to have the corpse cremated.

Under the law   the state government can also cremate unclaimed corpses in its mortuaries after a period of time and the ashes disposed  after a 14-day notice with   approval of the Commissioner for Health