FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — Health officials in Sierra Leone on Sunday confirmed an Ebola death less than a week after the country’s last known patient was discharged from a hospital.

Samples from the body of a 67-year-old woman who died recently in the Kambia district in the north of Sierra Leone came back positive for the disease, the country’s chief medical officer, Dr. Brima Kargbo, said.

Last Monday, the last known Ebola patient in Sierra Leone was discharged from a hospital, a milestone that allowed the country to begin a 42-day countdown toward being declared free of Ebola.