World Tour: Ebola outbreak spreads to new province, and Sudan approves transition deal

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: news from around the globe. Both our international reporters are traveling today. So we’ll be taking you on this week’s World Tour.

British consular worker missing in China—We start today in China.

Officials there say they have no information about a British consular employee reportedly detained in Shenzhen.

Simon Cheng Man-kit works as a trade and investment officer at the consulate in Hong Kong. He traveled to mainland China for a business event earlier this month. But he never returned.

The British foreign ministry said it was very concerned for Cheng’s safety.

Ongoing pro-democracy protests in the former British colony have raised tensions between Beijing and London in recent months.

BASHAM: Fires force evacuations in Canary Islands—Next we stop just off the coast of Africa.

AUDIO: [Sound of Canary Island firefighters]

Firefighters in the Canary Islands are struggling to contain a massive blaze that started over the weekend. It quickly consumed nearly 25,000 acres.

AUDIO: [Sound of the plane]

The flames rose so high in the air even planes dropping water had trouble getting close enough to do much good. Local officials are calling it an environmental disaster.

More than 9,000 people have evacuated the Spanish territory off the northwest coast of Africa.

REICHARD: Ebola outbreak spreads to new province—Next we go to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Officials there say the year-long Ebola outbreak has spread to another part of the country. The province of South Kivu sits on Congo’s eastern border with Rwanda.

AUDIO: [Sound of Governor of South Kivu]

The governor of South Kivu confirmed two Ebola cases: a 24-year-old mother and her 7-month-old baby. The mother died last week. Her child is still undergoing treatment.

The new cases highlight the difficulty health officials face in trying to contain the disease.

Last week, doctors began using two new treatments that showed promise in clinical trials. World Health Organization spokesman Christian Lindmeir  leaned-myer says the drugs don’t cure Ebola but increase a patient’s odds of surviving.

LINDMEIR: These are great news of course, and these news will save lives and move us closer to finding an effective treatment for Ebola.

The Ebola outbreak began a year ago and has killed more than 1,800 people so far.

BASHAM: Sudan approves transition deal—And finally, we end today in Sudan.

AUDIO: [Khartoum crowd celebrating]

People took to the streets of Khartoum over the weekend to celebrate a deal that will eventually lead to a civilian government.

Sudan’s military took control of the country in April after deposing President Omar al-Bashir. Protesters rallied for weeks to demand a civilian-led government.

Under the new agreement, civilians will participate in an 11-member sovereign council. It will rule the country for the next three years. A military commander will head the group for 21 months. After that, a civilian leader will take over.

Officials plan to hold elections 18 months later.

And that’s this week’s World Tour.

(AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File) In this July 13, 2019 file photo, health workers wearing protective gear check on a patient isolated in a plastic cube at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, Congo. 

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