Roughly two years after the Ebola outbreak started in the West African nation of Guinea, the World Health Organization has declared Guinea to be Ebola-free.
Forty-two days have passed since the last time a confirmed Ebola patient tested negative for the second time, according to the WHO.
While Guinea is now considered rid of Ebola, it is now in a 90-day "period of heightened surveillance" to make sure any newly discovered cases will be caught quickly before they spread.
Sierra Leone and Liberia, the other two nations affected most greatly by the outbreak, are also free of the Ebola virus. "This is the first time that all three countries — Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone — have stopped the original chains of transmission that were responsible for starting this devastating outbreak two years ago," said Matshidiso Moeti, a physician and WHO regional director for Africa. "I commend the governments, communities and partners for their determination in confronting this epidemic to get to this milestone. As we work towards building resilient healthcare systems, we need to stay vigilant to ensure that we rapidly stop any new flares that may come up in 2016."