Plateau Confirms Lassa Fever Outbreak, Records 11 Cases, Four Deaths

Yemi Kosoko in Jos

Plateau State has confirmed an outbreak of Lassa fever across seven local government areas, with eleven positive cases and four deaths recorded since December 2025.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr Nicholas Baamlong, announced this during a press briefing at the Ministry of Health in Jos, where he outlined the state’s response efforts and the current status of the outbreak.

According to him, the first alert came on 20 December 2025 after a case was detected in Quanpan Local Government Area. “We immediately activated our Incident Management Team,” he said.

Dr Baamlong explained that two initial cases triggered extensive contact tracing. “At that time, we traced about 69 contacts, from which we recorded 16 suspected cases and five were confirmed positive,” he noted.

Providing updated figures for 2026, the commissioner said the state has so far recorded 28 suspected cases, with six confirmed. “This means that from December till now, we have confirmed eleven positive cases in Plateau State,” he said.

The outbreak has resulted in four deaths across major health facilities in the state. “Sadly, we have recorded four deaths—two at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, one at the Plateau Specialist Hospital and one at the Bingham University Teaching Hospital,” he disclosed.

One of the fatalities, he added, was a medical practitioner who contracted the disease while attending to an infected patient. “As of today, another medical doctor is also on admission and receiving treatment,” he said.

Dr Baamlong revealed that 109 contacts are currently under follow‑up as surveillance intensifies. “What we are doing now is to continue active case search through surveillance and to deploy our rapid response teams to affected communities,” he explained.

The affected local government areas include Quanpan, Shendam, Wase, Langtang South, Jos North, Jos South and Mangu.

He emphasized the importance of public enlightenment in curbing the spread of the disease. “We are commencing active public health enlightenment. This is very key so that we can address and suppress the transmission of this disease,” he said.

The commissioner assured residents that treatment supplies and protective materials are available. “The drugs required for treatment, including personal protective equipment, have been distributed to health facilities and are currently available at the Jos University Teaching Hospital and the Plateau Specialist Hospital,” he stated.

Dr Baamlong urged residents to adhere strictly to preventive measures and seek prompt medical attention when experiencing symptoms, stressing that collective responsibility is crucial to containing the outbreak.