LONDON (Alliance News) - Sierra Rutile Ltd Tuesday said it has seen no reported or suspected cases of Ebola at its operations, but it has put in place precautionary measures to reduce the risk of being hit by the outbreak of the virus in West Africa.
The titanium feedstock minerals company, with operations in Sierra Leone, said that there have been no disruptions to its operations to date as a result of the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, with all operations and services currently operating as normal.
The company said that it has put in place precautionary measures to reduce the risks posed to its employees, contractors and visitors.
It said the measures include restrictions on travel to affected areas, limitations on access to non-essential visitors, screening for early signs of the virus and compulsory cleaning facilities at all entry points.
The company said it is monitoring the situation in the region carefully to allow rapid response if circumstances change.
"We have been monitoring the development of the virus since it was first identified in Guinea over five months ago, which has allowed us to implement appropriate preventative measures and contingency plans to minimize the risks to our people and operations," Chief Executive John Sisay said in a statement.
The WHO is warning of possibly "catastrophic" consequences from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, calling the outbreak in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and now Nigeria the deadliest ever.
As of July 31, the WHO had recorded 1,323 confirmed or suspected cases of Ebola in West Africa. Of these, 729 people have died.
Among the fatalities have been two doctors treating infected patients, one in Sierra Leone, the other in Liberia.
More than 60 healthcare workers have also lost their lives, according to the WHO.
The outbreak is caused by the most lethal strain in the family of Ebola viruses.
Ebola causes massive haemorrhages and has a fatality rate of 90%. It is transmitted through blood and other body fluids.
A range of AIM-listed companies also operate in the region, including Sula Iron and Gold PLC, which recently said its production was unaffected by the outbreak, and London Mining PLC, which evacuated "non-essential" staff from its operations in Sierra Leone in response to the outbreak in June.
Sierra Rutile shares were down 1.0% to 40.10 pence, putting it amongst the AIM All-Share fallers on Tuesday.
By Tom McIvor; tommcivor@alliancenews.com; @TomMcIvor1
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