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The Democratic Republic of Congo Dealing with Ebola Outbreak; August Had the Highest Job Opening Rate Since 2009; Out of 25 Fast Food Restaurants in the United States Only 2 got A`s for No Antibiotics In It`s Product; Man Sets Out To Break Own Record Of Riding A Wheelie Across Country
Aired October 18, 2018 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hi I`m Carl Azuz delivering Thursday`s edition of CNN 10 to viewers worldwide. Where ever you`re watching welcome to the
show. The Democratic Republic of Congo, a nation in Central Africa, isn`t just dealing with conflict between government troops and armed rebel
groups. It`s dealing with a deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus. And those two factors are making it increasingly difficult for international aid
workers to stop the virus from spreading. More than half of the people who`ve caught the virus have died from it. The World`s Health
Organization, a medical agency of the United Nations, held a meeting yesterday to discuss the crisis.
It says that the latest Ebola outbreak in Congo is a regional concern but at this point it does not fit the description of a public health emergency
of international concern. Part of the reason for that, officials have gotten better at fighting Ebola, for one thing there is a vaccine
available. It`s still experimental. It hasn`t been universally approved yet. But researchers with the WHO expect that approval will be given soon.
There are also several drugs available to treat Ebola that haven`t all been available in the 10 outbreaks that have happened since 1976. But some
health analysts say what`s occurring in Congo is still a major outbreak and as the security situation gets worse, so does the ability of health
officials to get a handle on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In the Eastern Congo the deadly Ebola outbreak in the middle of a conflict zone. The World`s Health
Organization calls it a vicious cycle. The health teams losing track of cases and contacts because of mistrust and violence.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are attacks and there - - there is violence between government and - - and rebel groups that is not directly targeted
to Ebola responders. But that force seems to not be able to function fully.
MCKENZIE: The Center for Disease Control`s team has now been pulled out of the worst impacted areas because of safety concerns say U.S. officials.
For days, specialist teams haven`t been able to function. The outbreak began in early August. It`s lasted longer and killed more than they had
feared.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You recall that we started with the three months time period. Now we will be looking to at least maybe three or four months and
we really need to (inaudible) this outbreak.
MCKENZIE: So far there have been 211 cases of Ebola with at least 135 deaths. And the WHO says there is a high risk of regional spread. It`s
security, large populations of displaced people and fluid borders are major factors that could cause a broader epidemic. The greatest risk still is in
North Kivu and the city of Bani. Some suspect that Ebola patients are too afraid to go to clinics believing it could be a death sentence. In
reality, it`s the best chance they have.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now we have people that have been really lost to follow up. They`re not being found for days on end. (inaudible) from one day and
they`re picked up the next day. The overwhelming majority of those people are in Bani, more than 90 percent.
MCKENZIE: This outbreak still nothing like the catastrophic epidemic in West Africa in 2014. When more than 11,000 died in six countries from the
highly infectious disease that leads to internal hemorrhaging and frequently death. The WHO was criticized for acting too slowly then but
it`s different now. Their teams rushed in with a new weapon. They`ve already reached thousands in high risk areas with an experimental vaccine.
Doctors now use a more effective clinical regimen learned from the (inaudible) in 2014 and new treatments. It`s helped cure this woman in
Bani. Doctors celebrating every victory because their battle is far from over. David McKenzie CNN Johannesburg.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARL AZUZ: 10 Second Trivia. Which of these American companies employs the most workers? Wal-Mart, McDonalds, UPS or the Home Depot. With more
than 2 million employees around the world and 1.5 million in the U.S. alone, Wal-Mart is the largest private employer on earth.
Help wanted. As of this August, there are more job openings in the U.S. than there`ve been at any point since the year 2000, when the Labor
Department launched it`s job openings and labor turnover survey. How many jobs? Almost 7 million, 140 thousand and that`s with hiring at record
levels as well with 5 million, 780 thousand Americans getting jobs in August. In another first for the survey, there are more job openings in
America than there are unemployed people in America. That`s according to the U.S. Labor Department.
Contrast that to when the great recession officially ended in June of 2009. At that time there was six unemployed Americans for every one job opening.
The new numbers are great news for the U.S. economy and they are for workers who have the skills for the jobs that are available. And though
wage growth hasn`t kept pace with job growth in recent years, it has been increasing in recent months. And economists are saying that with more
companies competing with each other to hire a limited number of workers, wages are likely to go up faster as well. Are there any downsides here?
Well an economist interviewed by the Wall Street Journal says that if job opening continue to increase but the pool of workers does not, it could
result in a labor shortage and that could put the brakes on U.S. economic growth. For now though, economists say those who are in the market for a
new job and who are a good match for the jobs that are available will probably have more power to negotiate salaries and perks than they have in
the past.
A new sort of report card is out for 25 of America`s top hamburger chains and 22 of them got an F. The report concerns the use of antibiotics in
their food supplies. It was conducted by several non-profit advocacy and research groups. The 25 fast food restaurants in the report were ranked by
their total sales in the U.S. And they were graded on three main areas. One, are these companies promising to eliminate routine antibiotics from
the animals in their food supply? Two, how are they doing that? And three, what proof is there that they`re making good on their promises?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves the use of antibiotics in the food supply and those who support the practice say it keeps food safer
by decreasing the amount of harmful bacteria in it. But scientists are concerned that ramped use of antibiotics in the animals used for food could
have dangerous consequences down the road for the people who eat it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Six consumer interest groups are now sounding the alarm about the use of antibiotics in meat served at the 25 largest burger chains
in the United States. Shake Shack and Burgerfi are the only two chains that only serve beef raised without antibiotics and earned a grade of A.
22 chains got an F on the Chain Reaction Four report for their lack of antibiotic policies and practices. So why should you care about this?
Well as you know antibiotics should be used to treat an animal or a human with a bacterial infection. But in this case, antibiotics were used to
prevent potential diseases that could spend from poor diets and crowded dirty conditions.
But here`s the problem with that. Using antibiotics when they`re not needed can make bacteria resistant and a human can potentially eat those
bacteria especially if the meat is not cooked properly. The result, antibiotics may not work then when we need them most. You should know that
the beef industry also uses six hormones to promote faster growth and weight gain. You know, here`s a good rule of thumb. Read the ingredients
and try to avoid foods that contain ingredients you can`t pronounce. The old adage has always and will forever continue to hold true. You are what
you eat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARL AZUZ: It`s one thing to pop a wheelie. It`s another to do that and ride the bike across the country. That`s what Kurt Osborne (ph) did back
in 1999 setting a Guinness World Record. Now he`s back on two pedals but one wheel to try to break his own record. The last time it took him 74
days to travel more than 2,800 miles. This time he`s hoping to finish the journey in 45 days. The 49 year old wheelie king is using a plexiglass
trailer to help block the wind.
Because being busted by a gust of bluster would be a "wheelie" big shame. Besides getting "wheelie" tired at least one "tired", one "wheelie" good
reason not to "imbike" on such a journey. Without balance, you might have to "recycle". I`m Carl Azuz pedaling news and puns for CNN 10.
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