The burial of Kenya’s first Ebola patient at Lang’ata Cemetery in Nairobi was conducted under stringent health measures aimed at preventing further transmission of the deadly virus.
The vehicle carrying the deceased arrived at the cemetery at about 2.30pm on Wednesday, with only a small group of mourners present at the Islamic section where the burial took place.
The mourners wore masks and kept their distance from the grave as health officials oversaw the proceedings.
A fire burnt next to the freshly dug grave as part of the burial procedure. Materials that came into contact with the body were destroyed at the site to minimise the risk of infection.
A man wearing a full hazmat suit, including protective boots, was also seen disinfecting a red Toyota Fielder parked near the burial site.
The vehicle had transported the patient from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Nairobi Hospital. The worker thoroughly sprayed its interior with disinfectant before leaving the area.
The measures provided a rare glimpse into the precautions being taken by health authorities following Kenya’s first confirmed Ebola case.
A Ministry of Health official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the safety measures begin immediately after an Ebola patient dies.
According to the official, the body must be buried within 24 hours.
A trained Ministry of Health official first cleans and disinfects the body before it is wrapped in several layers of protective material. Family members are not permitted to handle the body, and there is no viewing.
The deceased is then transported directly to the burial site, with only the body and the driver allowed inside the vehicle.
At the cemetery, a limited number of relatives may be permitted to witness the burial, but they must remain at a safe distance as the body is lowered into the grave.
The grave must be at least six feet deep. Once the burial is complete, protective equipment and other materials used during the exercise, including hazmat suits and gumboots, are destroyed at the site.
Security was tight around the cemetery, with several men who attempted to document the burial proceedings removed from the area.
A family member also said relatives had been instructed not to speak to the media.
Health Services Director-General Patrick Amoth said Ebola victims should be accorded a Safe and Dignified Burial (SDB) in line with public health guidelines intended to prevent further transmission.
The World Health Organization established the SDB approach during the 2014 Ebola outbreak.
The practice seeks to balance infection prevention with the cultural and religious needs of bereaved families by allowing limited family participation and religious rites where possible.
Amoth said the body must be securely wrapped and neither viewed nor touched.
“While we are cognisant of cultural and religious practices, a burial is limited to a small number of family members who can witness the burial. The burial is usually done as fast as possible, regardless of their religious beliefs. Ideally, the burial should happen within 24 hours,” he said.
Health authorities face a delicate challenge because many traditional burial practices involve relatives washing, preparing or touching the body.
Such practices are prohibited in the case of Ebola deaths because they can expose mourners and burial teams to infection.
The challenge has been particularly evident in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the epicentre of the ongoing Ebola outbreak, where cultural burial practices have complicated efforts to contain the disease.
Scientists reviewing the Bundibugyo virus Ebola outbreak also documented cases in which families and community members challenged burial procedures, threatened burial teams or forcibly opened coffins to inspect the bodies.
They noted that such resistance often reflected uncertainty and mistrust over how deceased relatives were handled.
Burial practices, the researchers observed, can become a point where public health requirements clash with deeply held cultural and social beliefs, with misinformation and differing interpretations of the disease potentially worsening mistrust.
