Genetic clues to spread of Ebola

28 August 2014 Last updated at 14:00 ET 

By Helen Briggs Health editor, BBC News website

Scientists have tracked the spread of Ebola in West Africa, revealing genetic clues to the course of the outbreak.

Genetic analysis of patient samples suggests the virus spread from Guinea to Sierra Leone at a single funeral.
The virus is mutating and must be contained rapidly, warn African and US experts. But they say there is no evidence the virus is changing its behaviour.

The current outbreak is the largest ever, with more than 3,000 cases.
The number of cases could exceed 20,000 before the outbreak is stemmed, according to the World Health Organization.
"We've uncovered more than 300 genetic clues about what sets this outbreak apart from previous outbreaks," said Stephen Gire from the Broad Institute and Harvard University in the US.

The isolation ward at Kenema Government Hospital in Kenema, Sierra Leone

"Although we don't know whether these differences are related to the severity of the current outbreak, by sharing these data with the research community, we hope to speed up our understanding of this epidemic and support global efforts to contain it."
The data, published in Science, suggests the virus made the leap from animals to humans only once in the current outbreak.

“Start Quote

Clearly this virus is evolving, but what's not clear is whether or not the mutations it's accumulating affect the way it behaves.”

Prof Jonathan Ball Nottingham University

The strain emerged in Central Africa in the past 10 years, probably carried by animals such as fruit bats or primates.

The first human cases appeared in Guinea, then the disease spread to Sierra Leone, reportedly at the funeral of a traditional healer.
There is evidence the virus is mutating, "underscoring the need for rapid containment", the team writes in Science.
"The longer the outbreak happens, the more opportunity the virus has to accumulate mutations," Dr Gire told the BBC.

But he said there was no evidence at present that the virus was changing its behaviour and becoming better adapted to humans.
Commenting on the research, Prof Jonathan Ball, a virus expert at Nottingham University, said: "Clearly this virus is evolving, but what's not clear is whether or not the mutations it's accumulating affect the way it behaves."
The genetic samples came from 78 patients at a hospital in Sierra Leone who were infected in May and June.
These were compared with existing virus samples from Guinea.
Five of the 58 experts named on the paper died from Ebola in Sierra Leone during the study. 
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-28958495

Ebola Necessitates Withdrawal of NTM USA Members

 

 

POSTED ON August 27, 2014

All New Tribes Mission USA personnel in Liberia and Guinea are leaving those countries as soon as flights are available because of the Ebola epidemic there.
NTM made this decision because of the increasing difficulty of transiting out of those countries. Some airlines have suspended service to the region and remaining flights are filling. Some countries are closing their borders.
This was a difficult decision that required balancing the safety of NTM personnel against the needs of the people with whom they work and was only made after a process of monitoring the situation for many weeks. Most of our families are in these countries with their children and are also not performing intensive medical services, so their presence there could become a detriment to critical healthcare teams if the crisis escalates.
Liberia and Guinea are the only countries affected by the Ebola epidemic where NTM currently has personnel.
We are closely monitoring the spread of this disease and the safety and effectiveness of our members in other nearby countries.
We would appreciate your prayer for our families in transition as a result of these decisions and also for the people of Guinea and Liberia who are dealing with the Ebola crisis.  http://usa.ntm.org/mission-news/79993/ebola-necessitates-withdrawal-of-ntm-usa-members

Nigeria confirms Ebola death in oil city of Port Harcourt

Posted on 28 August 2014 - 09:29pm
Last updated on 28 August 2014 - 09:54pm

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ABUJA: Nigeria on Thursday said that a doctor had died from Ebola in the southeastern oil city of Port Harcourt in the first case of the deadly virus outside the country's biggest city, Lagos.
Health minister Onyebuchi Chukwu said the medic died on Aug 22 after treating a patient who had contact with Liberian-American Patrick Sawyer, who brought the virus to Nigeria and who died in a Lagos hospital on July 25.
"Following the report of this death by the doctor's widow the next day, the case had been thoroughly investigated and laboratory analysis showed that this doctor died from EVD (Ebola Virus Disease)," he told reporters in the capital Abuja.
The latest case brings to six the number of people who have died from the haemorrhagic fever in Nigeria. Fifteen people have now been confirmed to have the disease.
On Wednesday, Chukwu had said that the virus was contained as there were no cases outside Lagos but warned against complacency in fighting the disease.
News that a doctor died 435 kilometres (270 miles) away will raise fears about the spread of the virus, just as Nigerians began to think that they had stopped Ebola in its tracks.
Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers state, is the centre of Nigeria's oil industry and home to a number of oil giants, including Anglo-Dutch giant Shell, France's Total and US firm Chevron.
Nigeria is Africa's largest oil producer, churning out roughly two million barrels a day, with crude accounting for more than 90% of its foreign exchange earnings.
Residents in Port Harcourt said they were shocked and scared by the arrival of Ebola and called on the state government to tackle the virus.
"Port Harcourt plays host to a lot of people, including foreigners. All efforts should be made to check the spread of the virus," said local student Lucy Ekeh.
Hotel room
Chukwu said the patient, an official with the ECOWAS regional bloc who took Sawyer to hospital after he arrived unwell at Lagos airport on July 20, managed to evade detection and went to Port Harcourt in the last week of July.
Another ECOWAS official died of Ebola, the bloc announced on Aug 12.
His colleague saw the doctor who died in Port Harcourt in a city hotel room after showing Ebola-like symptoms, Rivers State health commissioner Sampson Parker said separately.
Chukwu added: "After four days, following a manhunt for him, he (the patient) returned to Lagos by which time he was found to be without symptoms.
"This case would have been of no further interest since he had completed the 21 days of surveillance without any other issue but for the fact that the doctor who treated him died last Friday."
Following the doctor's death, the minister said that several contacts had now been "traced, registered and placed under surveillance".

His widow, also a medical doctor, has shown symptoms of the virus and has been placed in isolation pending results of laboratory tests, he added.
"We don't know what the result will turn out to be but certainly if it turns out to be positive, it's likely we will move her to Lagos," the minister said.

Chukwu said that there were 70 people under surveillance in Port Harcourt, while six people were being watched in the eastern city of Enugu, where a nurse who treated Sawyer visited before displaying symptoms.
A treatment group has been in Port Harcourt since Wednesday morning and a mobile laboratory was being sent to the city this weekend, he added.
Parker said that the hotel had been decontaminated.http://www.thesundaily.my/news/1154642

 Port Harcourt lies at the heart of Nigeria's two million barrels per day oil industry, Africa's biggest, and is a hub for expatriate workers in major international oil companies, including Royal Dutch Shell, ENI, Total and Exxonmobil. http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/28/health-ebola-nigeria-idUSL5N0QY2D620140828

Ebola in Nigeria's Oil Hub

August 28, 2014

A doctor in Nigeria's oil industry hub of Port Harcourt has died from Ebola fever, after he was infected by man linked to the first case in Africa's most populous country, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.

Heath Ministry spokesman Dan Nwomeh said on his Twitter feed that the doctor had treated a primary contact of Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian who brought Ebola to Lagos. His death brings the number of Ebola fatalities in Nigeria to 6.

The total number of recorded cases had risen by two to 15, Nwomeh said, the other one being the wife of the doctor who is showing Ebola symptoms and whose test results are awaited.

Port Harcourt lies at the heart of Nigeria's two million barrels per day oil industry, Africa's biggest, and is a hub for expatriate workers in major international oil companies.

Nwomeh said 70 contacts of the doctor were now under surveillance in Port Harcourt.

It was not immediately clear what impact the arrival of Ebola would have on oil operations. The majors operating in Nigeria have historically been comfortable with a fair degree of risk in the oil producing Niger Delta, including attacks on oil installations and rampant kidnapping of expatriates.

The news came two days after Health Minister Onyebuchi Chukwu said authorities had "thus far contained" the Ebola outbreak in Africa's largest economy, with only one case left being treated in an isolation ward in Lagos.

All Nigerian cases have been direct or indirect contacts of Sawyer, who collapsed on arrival at Lagos airport on July 25 and later died but was treated before anyone knew what he had.

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa has taken 1,552 lives out of 3,069 known cases in four countries and "continues to accelerate", the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Thursday.  http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/Ebola-in-Nigerias-Oil-Hub-2014-08-28

How Diplomat Secretly Exported Ebola to Port Harcourt

on Aug 28, 2014 |

Facts have emerged on how a Nigerian diplomat infected a medical doctor with the deadly Ebola Virus just as health authorities announced that it had been effectively controlled in Lagos.
Street Journal gathered that the diplomat who had primary contact with Patrick Sawyer, the index case of the disease and after showing symptoms, he reportedly evaded health workers in Lagos and moved to Port Harcourt where he engaged the service of Dr. I. S. Enemuo of Sam Steel Clinic, East West Road, Rumuokoro who treated him secretly. Street Journal gathered that the diplomat, on being stabilized, flew back to Lagos.
Findings also revealed that the Monday after he concluded the diplomat’s treatment, Dr. Enemuo did a surgery on a woman, only dor him to fall ill on Tuesday. When he was not responding to treatment and it became noticeable that he was peesenting symptoms including vomiting blood and bloody diarrhoea, he was rushed to Prime Clinic but was rejected. He was later taken to Good Heart on Evo Road, GRA where he was placed on admission. He died on Friday.
Sensing what might happen, Rivers State Governor, Hon Rotimi Amaechi appealed for calm as it has become obvious that there might be well over 200 contacts already. The deceased doctor’s wife is a primary contact, so also is his 3-month-old baby and as many as might have come in contact with them for medical reasons or otherwise.
Meanwhile, the diplomat was said to have submitted himself for medical checks in order to he cleared to travel out of the country.
Contact tracing efforts have started while health workers are being trained on how to manage the situation  http://thestreetjournal.org/2014/08/how-diplomat-secretly-exported-ebola-to-port-harcourt/

Rivers doctor dies of Ebola

• Thursday, 28 August 2014 15:42
• Written by Kelvin Ebiri

THE enormity of the Ebola outbreak now pervades Port Harcourt following the death of a medical doctor,  Ike  Sam Enemuo, who allegedly contacted the virus from an Ebola patient he allegedly  secretly treated.
The  reported death of Mr. Enemuo due to Ebola virus has  triggered panic Thursday  at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) where his  corpse is said to be in the morgue.
As part of precautionary measure to curb the spread of the dreaded diseases, the Rivers state government said it has placed no fewer than 100 persons under surveillance.The has however refused to reveal location of the isolation centers and the hotel where the man who brought the virus to the state stayed.
Though there has been speculation  in the past two week that an Ebola patient flew into Port Harcourt, the Rivers State Commissioner of Health, Sampson Parker,  yesterday acknowledged  the death of  Enemuo from Ebola virus disease. The late doctor is said to be the owner of a private hospital at Rumuokoro in Port Harcourt.
"The Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has directed me to make this solemn announcement to you. And it is with a heavy heart that I announce to you that the ebola virus has claimed its first victim in Rivers State. Dr. Iyke Sam Enemuo died last week Friday, August 22, 2014 as a result of what was suspected to be ebola virus disease," he said.
Parker told journalists at his residence in Port Harcourt that  the Rivers State Ministry of Health on becoming aware of the conditions of Enemuo's  death, immediately commenced investigations and contact tracing.  According to him, about one hundred contacts from a  hotel, patients of  Enemuo and patients of the hospital where the late Enemuo was treated until his demise have been identified and restricted in Rivers State and that  locations are being decontaminated.  http://ngrguardiannews.com/news/national-news/176829-rivers-doctor-dies-of-ebola

Unburied Bodies Show Ebola-Hit Areas’ Transportation Woes

By Simeon Bennett Aug 28, 2014 12:47 PM ET
The bodies of Ebola victims are taking as long as five days to be buried in Liberia as a shortage of ambulances and fuel compound the fear and isolation that are stoking the worst outbreak of the virus on record.
A lack of vehicles and a fuel shortage are hampering the ability of the World Health Organization and its allies to reach affected communities and investigate new cases, said Rick Brennan, director of the WHO’s department of emergency risk management and humanitarian response.
“Getting those activities running in the counties requires a lot of vehicles and fuel, and both of those are in short supply,” Brennan said by phone from Monrovia, the capital of Liberia, which has the highest death toll in the current outbreak at 694. “The roads here really beat up the vehicles, so they don’t have a long shelf-life.”
The cancellation of flights to West Africa by carriers including British Airways and Air France, contrary to advice from the WHO, also poses a challenge to bringing in people and supplies to the region and getting them where they need to go. The limits on transportation have also made local people feel isolated and demoralized, said Keiji Fukuda, the WHO’s assistant director-general for health security.

Reeling Economies

“If companies pull out, if airlines continue not to fly here and more close down, it is going to just worsen the economic impact and the social impact,” Fukuda said in a phone interview from Monrovia. “These countries don’t have that much resilience. What other countries may be able to withstand is going to send these countries potentially reeling.”
The worst-affected nations may see 1 percentage point to 1.5 percentage points shaved off economic growth because of the disease, African Development Bank President Donald Kaberuka said this week.
The human toll of the outbreak has risen to 1,552 dead of the 3,069 people infected so far in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Nigeria, according to the Geneva-based WHO. More than 240 health-care workers have been infected so far and more than 120 have died because of a shortage of personal protective equipment or its improper use, the WHO has said.
“We need the sea ports and airports to be opened so we can receive supplies, medicines, relief items and personnel to help curb the spread of the disease,” said Musu J. Ruhle, charge d’affaires of the Embassy of Liberia in Ghana, at a meeting of West African health ministers in Accra, Ghana’s capital. “The whole country is isolated.”

Burial Teams

Liberia has deployed more burial teams, Assistant Minister of Health for Preventive Services Tolbert Nyenswah said today in Monrovia. Fourteen of 15 counties have received protective equipment after donations from China, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the United Nations Children’s Fund, or Unicef. A fleet of 23 ambulances is now available, and India has donated water, rice and 100 beds and mattresses, Nyenswah said.
Health-care workers have been going through the equipment more quickly than expected through overuse or not reusing some items such as face shields, goggles, heavy-duty gloves and heavy aprons, said Nyka Alexander, a WHO spokeswoman. Goggles and boots can be disinfected and reused, though disposable gloves, surgical gowns and scrubs are destroyed after one use, Alexander said.

Direct Relief

Direct Relief, a Santa Barbara, California-based charity, said a 4,000-pound shipment of supplies including gloves, gowns and antibiotics will head to Liberia via Brussels today. The shipment, carried by Brussels Airlines and originally scheduled to arrive on Monday, has faced disruptions as Senegal closed its border to flights originating from the affected region.
Doctors Without Borders has a supply center in Brussels and has been chartering its own flights from there. Unicef this week delivered 100 tons of equipment to Liberia, including personal protective equipment, gloves and thermometers, the fund said in a statement.
The WHO is relying on Brussels Airlines and Morocco’s Royal Air Maroc, which are still serving the affected countries, as well as on the UN Humanitarian Air Service, which has a plane and three helicopters in the region.
“We are worried that more air carriers may suspend flights,” Brennan said. “Some of the shipping firms have shown a little bit of hesitation. These are issues we’ve got to watch very closely.”

Canceled Flights

The UN health agency and the International Air Transport Association have said that travel and trade restrictions aren’t warranted and that the risk of Ebola spreading through air travel is low. Airlines haven’t been listening.
Emirates is also among airlines that have suspended flights to affected countries.
DHL Express is still operating daily flights to the Guinean capital of Conakry; Freetown, Sierra Leone; and Monrovia, though it has stopped taking blood samples out of them, said Dan McGrath, a spokesman for the carrier in Bonn.
Meanwhile, the WHO has asked for volunteers from its 7,000 staff globally to assist in West Africa, Fukuda said.
“Everyone in the organization is asked to be ready to contribute,” he said. “There are a lot of people who are saying, ’We’re ready to go.’”  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-28/unburied-bodies-show-ebola-hit-areas-transportation-woes.html

TAN’s rallies flouting Ebola control measures, stop them now, APC tells Jonathan

on August 28, 2014   /

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has called on President Goodluck Jonathan to immediately halt the rallies being organized across the nation in his support by the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN), saying the rallies are jeopardizing Nigeria’s efforts to control the spread of Ebola.
”Mr. President, you said your ambition is not worth the life of any Nigerian. But the TAN rallies for your re-election are endangering the lives of thousands of Nigerians in these days of Ebola. Some things must simply transcend politics. This is one of them. Please stop the rallies now,” the party said in a statement issued in Ilorin on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
It said the President must in particular ensure that the rally slated for Port Harcourt on Saturday is stopped, in view of the spread of the Ebola virus to the Rivers capital and the fact that 100 people have been placed under surveillance there following the death of a medical doctor from a suspected Ebola disease in the city... http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/08/tans-rallies-flouting-ebola-control-measures-stop-now-apc-tells-jonathan/

Experimental Canadian Ebola vaccine wouldn’t reach Africa before 2015

Kelly Grant - HEALTH REPORTER

The Globe and Mail

Published Thursday, Aug. 28 2014, 12:43 PM EDT
Human trials of Canada’s experimental Ebola vaccine are expected to start in the United States this fall, but, like other vaccine candidates headed for accelerated testing in humans, the Canadian-developed injection will not be deployed to the West African outbreak until next year at the earliest.
The U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) announced Thursday that it would begin next week enrolling healthy adult volunteers in a phase I trial of a different vaccine, developed in partnership with the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, Inc., and based on a chimpanzee cold virus.... http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/experimental-canadian-ebola-vaccine-wouldnt-reach-africa-before-2015/article20234961/

Britain advises against all but essential travel to Ebola-hit nations

Updated: Friday August 29, 2014 MYT 12:40:27 AM

Britain advises against all but essential travel to Ebola-hit nations

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain warned its citizens on Thursday to avoid all but essential travel to west African countries hit by the world's worst outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus.
The escalation in the travel advice issued by the foreign office in regards to Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia came after a British volunteer nurse working in west Africa became the first British citizen to contract the disease.
On Aug. 5, British Airways announced it was suspending flights to Sierra Leone and Liberia until Aug. 31. These services have now been suspended until Dec. 31.
So far 3,069 cases have been reported in the outbreak but the World Health Organisation says the actual number could already be two to four times higher.

(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith, Editing by Ralph Boulton)

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http://www.thestar.com.my/News/World/2014/08/29/Britain-advises-against-all-but-essential-travel-to-Ebolahit-nations/

Two Ebola Cases Confirmed in Port Harcourt – Minister

SAN FRANCISCO, August 28, (THEWILL) - Nigeria's Health Minister, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, has announced two new cases of the deadly Ebola disease in Port Harcourt, River State.
He named a physician, Dr. Ikechukwu Sam Enemuo, who was killed by the disease as one of the victims. Dr. Enemoah is believed to have treated a diplomat that had direct contact with the Liberian-American man, Patrick Sawyer that brought the disease to Nigeria.
The diplomat, according to the Minister is not symptomatic but has been placed under surveillance. http://www.thenigerianvoice.com/news...t-ministe.html

Liberia: 'We Have Failed in Fighting Ebola'

 28 August 2014

Gbarpolu County Senator Armah Z. Jallah has confessed the failure and ineptitude of the Government of Liberia to combat the Ebola virus in the country.
Speaking to reporters at the Capitol on August 27, 2014, he mentioned that the fight against the deadly virus is beyond the control of the government, and as such the fight should be given to international health experts, who have the experience and technical knowhow to wipe the virus out of the country.
He mentioned that the fight towards the Ebola virus should be outsourced from the Government of Liberia because according to him, nothing tangible has been done to eradicate the human killer.
Senator Jallah stressed that the remaining US$15 million should be given to the US Center for Disease Control, instead of the Liberian government, which is in the country to work along with the government.
The Gbarpolu County lawmaker indicated that Liberia lacks the experience and competence to fight the virus and out of weakness and ignorance, the virus continues to take away many lives.
He said doctors and nurses including the National Taskforce that is headed by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf do not have the medical sophistication to deal with the human killer in the country.
Senator Jallah pointed out that the country should be divided into three regions with medical practitioners from the Center for Disease Control and Medicine San-Frontier assigned in each of the regions to provide medical treatment to the dying Liberians.
The Gbarpolu County Senator indicated that it is only the international health team that can rescue the government and its people from the virus. http://allafrica.com/stories/201408281601.html

India-867 passengers being tracked for Ebola Virus Disease

867 passengers being tracked for Ebola Virus Disease

WHO has reported a total of 3069  cases and 1552 deaths (as on 26th August 2014) due to Ebola Virus Disease from affected countries. Country-wise break up is as under: Sl.No. Country Cases Deaths 1. Guinea 648 430 2. Liberia 1378 694 3. Sierra Leone 1026 422 4. Nigeria   17   06 Total 3069             1552 One passenger who travelled from Nigeria and quarantined at isolation facility at Delhi Airport yesterday have been tested negative for EVD and released from this facility. During past 24 hours, 126 passengers from the affected countries have arrived at the Airports of Mumbai (57), Delhi (46), Kochi (6), Bangalore (4),Trivandrum(2),Kolkata(2) and Chennai (9). Three passengers travelling from Sierra Leone have been found symptomatic and quarantined at isolation facility at Delhi airport. Their reports are awaited. About 15009 passengers arriving at International airports have been screened since it started on 10th August 2014 (as on 27th August 2014) Today, 03 passengers were enrolled for follow up in their respective States through State IDSP units. As on date, a cumulative number of 867 passengers are being tracked. Most of them are in the States of Maharashtra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.  http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=109151

Infected Margibians ‘Sneaking’ into Grand Bassa

Margibi and Bassa Counties share a common border, parts of which are porous (Google Maps image)

Infected Margibians ‘Sneaking’ into Grand Bassa

Thu, 08/28/2014 - 07:22 admin

Bassa County Orders All Officers to Monitor Localities

By: 

Conscience N. Tequah (in Grand Bassa County)

The Grand Bassa County local administration is alarmed about the increase in deaths reported in towns bordering Margibi County, and has quarantined several towns within its domain, where deaths have occurred. Yet, still, the porous rural terrain does not prevent other towns from danger as reports say infected people from Dolo’s Town in Margibi have snuck into towns in rural Grand Bassa to avoid the quarantine imposed by the Government of Liberia. 
In a press conference held at the administrative building in Buchanan last week, the County Information Officer Eddie Williams said due to the close proximity of the other infected counties, Grand Bassa stands a high risk of infection.
Despite warnings by local authorities, people are circumventing the checkpoints that connect the two counties.  The check point at Owensgrove has a health post to test travelers for high fever, a trait that suggests the presence of the Ebola virus.
At Owensgrove, Grand Bassa borders Margibi County, home to Dolo’s town, from where people have reportedly fled to rural parts of Grand Bassa by boat. Dolo’s Town is now under quarantine due to the high rate of Ebola infection there.
“Since those reports, there have been occurrences of strange deaths in villages and towns closer to Margibi County,” Williams said.
“In Gbarpleh Town, Bassa County for example, some 20 persons have died and were buried by the town’s people without informing the county authorities, though the cause of the deaths could not be confirmed.
“It was confirmed that of those 20 persons, 11 had come from Dolo’s Town. “In another town called Commission’s Town, there were six deaths reported; Quenweh Town, 2 deaths; Jacob Lateh Town 3 deaths, 1 confirmed of Ebola,” he explained.
Although many of the deaths reported have not been tested for Ebola, the rate at which they are happening
As a result the Grand Bassa county administration has ordered all local government officers to remain in their localities to monitor activities and number every hut within their respective areas.
“This will help them have a record and monitor the movements of citizens and visitors in and out of their districts, clans, towns and villages. There isn’t a possibility that everybody will be tested,” he stressed.
The County has also halted all market days and large public gatherings until further notice and vowed to prosecute violators.
“All officers, district elders and superintendents must report to health authorities about all illnesses and health problems. That is why we decided, as a county, that all local authorities remain in their localities,” he added.
According to Williams, towns with deaths reported have been quarantined, and will be fed by the County authority.
“As it regards the 3 nurses who came in contact with the Ebola Patient from Rivercess, the nurse who was showing signs and symptoms was taken to Monrovia for proper treatment where he was reported dead. We are keeping close watch with the other nurses in the quarantine unit.
Williams closed by admonishing people need to “be fully involved as a means of showing responsibility. Ebola does not discriminate amongst people. Citizens must be ready and willing to support and work with the task force. The force consists of Organizations and Groupings.”  http://www.liberianobserver.com/news/infected-margibians-%E2%80%98sneaking%E2%80%99-grand-bassa

Rivers confirms case of Ebola death in PH

on August 28, 2014   /   in News 2:24 pm 

BY JIMITOTA ONOYUME
PORT HARCOURT: RIVERS state government has confirmed the death of a medical doctor from Ebola virus.
Commissioner of Health, Dr Sampson Parker who broke the news Thursday in Port Harcourt said the late Dr Iyke Sam Enemuo died Friday last week from suspected Ebola virus, adding that a test on his corpse released yesterday confirmed that the deceased died from the virus.
He said the late Enemuo met a staff of Economic Community of West African states, Ecowas at a hotel in Port Harcourt, noting that the ECOWAS staff was on the team of those that received the index case, late Patrick. According to the Commissioner of Health, one week after the ECOWAS staff left Port Harcourt the late Dr Enemuo took ill and was admitted in a hospital.
The Commissioner, Dr Parker said the wife of late Dr Enemuo who is also a doctor had fallen sick and had been quarantined, adding that about 100 persons who had primary or secondary contact with the late Dr Enemuo had been placed on watchlist.
While appealing to residents of the state not to panic the Commissioner, Dr Parkar said adequate measures were in place to check the spread of the disease.
His words,: “My friends, brothers and sisters. The Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has directed me to make this solemn announcement to you.
And it is with a heavy heart that I announce to you that the ebola virus has claimed its first victim in Rivers State. Dr. Iyke Sam Enemuo died last week Friday, August 22, 2014 as a result of what was suspected to be ebola virus disease.
The Rivers State Ministry of Health on becoming aware of the conditions of his death, immediately commenced investigations and contact tracing.
As at today, about one hundred contacts from a hotel, patients of Dr. Enemuo and patients of the hospital where the late Enemuo was treated until his demise have been identified and restricted in Rivers State.
The locations are being decontaminated. I had promised to be open and candid with the public on our efforts to tackle the ebola virus.
From our investigations some facts have emerged. A staff of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the team that received late Dr. Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian American diplomat who died of ebola haemorrhagic disease in Lagos, Nigeria made a trip to Port Harcourt where he checked into a hotel and met with Dr. Iyke Sam Enemuo.
About a week after his departure, Dr. Iyke Enemuo took ill and was rushed to a hospital where he presented with symptoms of fever, diarrhea and vomiting.
In the course of treatment, the managing physician became suspicious and took samples for investigation. A few days after, Dr. Iyke Enemuo died on August 22, 2014. His body was deposited at a mortuary in Port Harcourt.
Dr. Iyke Enemuo’s widow, who is also a medical doctor and who cared for him during his illness has taken ill. She is being quarantined.
A few hours ago, results of the test carried out on samples taken from Dr. Enemuo came back and was positive of Ebola Viral disease.
The diplomat who was seen by late Dr. Iyke Enemuo is alive and well. I urge every Rivers State citizen and resident to remain calm and go about their normal businesses. Wash your hands regularly with soap and water and avoid unnecessary body contacts till further notice.
The Government of Rivers State is doing everything possible to contain the effects and spread of the ebola virus. We have all the material and human resources we need to fight and defeat the deadly virus.
Officials of the Federal Ministry of Health and other international agencies are already here working with the state ministry of health. Together, I believe we can contain the ebola virus.
I shall continue to update you as more information become available. Thank you, stay safe and God bless.”
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/08/rivers-confirms-one-case-ebola-death-ph/ 

Liberia: Suspected Ebola Patient On the Run in Nimba, Flees Hospital

28 August 2014
Monrovia — FrontPageAfrica has gathered that a suspected Ebola patient whose specimen was brought to Monrovia for testing has escaped isolation in Sanniquellie, Nimba County. The suspect, a male is said to have left the center after the electricity went off.
"He left the center because the electricity went off, accordingly because he was afraid", Teeko T. Yorlay, Assistant Superintendent for Development confirmed to FPA. Assistant Superintendent Yorlay said health workers have already taken the specimen of the man who has been showing signs and symptoms of the virus to Monrovia for testing...http://allafrica.com/stories/201408281374.html?viewall=1

Ebola spreads to Nigeria oil hub Port Harcourt

  28 August 2014 Last updated at 08:02 ET

Nigeria has confirmed its first Ebola death outside Lagos – a doctor in the oil hub of Port Harcourt.

His wife has been put under quarantine, while a further 70 people in the city are under surveillance.
Latest figures show more than 1,550 people have died of Ebola, with at least 3,000 confirmed cases - mostly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the total number of cases could potentially exceed 20,000.
In an action plan to deal with the outbreak, the WHO said that "the actual number of cases may be 2-4 fold higher than that currently reported" in some areas.
Speaking to reporters, the WHO assistant director-general, Bruce Aylward, said the possibility of 20,000 cases "is a scale that I think has not ever been anticipated in terms of an Ebola outbreak".
He added: "That's not saying we expect 20,000... but we have got to have a system in place that we can deal with robust numbers.''..
This unprecedented outbreak is currently out of control as medical agencies struggle to cope with the increasing number of cases on the ground and continue to face hostility from communities in certain affected areas, the BBC's West Africa correspondent Thomas Fessy reports.
Before any results are seen on the ground, the number of infected people will probably continue to grow given that most treatment centres are already operating at full capacity, our correspondent adds.,..
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28966258

Ebola toll tops 1,550, outbreak accelerates: WHO

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/28/us-health-ebola-toll-idUSKBN0GS0UO20140828

GENEVA Thu Aug 28, 2014 8:19am EDT

(Reuters) - The Ebola outbreak in West Africa has killed more than 1,552 people out of 3,069 known cases in four countries and "continues to accelerate", the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Thursday.
The epidemic in the region, the deadliest since the disease was first discovered in 1976, has killed nearly as many people as all the previous known outbreaks combined.
"More than 40 percent of the total number of cases have occurred within the past 21 days. However, most cases are concentrated in only a few localities," the United Nations health agency said in a statement.
The WHO is later due to launch a new strategic plan for tackling the spread of the virulent disease.
A separate Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, identified as a different strain of the virus, is not included in the latest figures which cover Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
The disease has overwhelmed West Africa's already fragile health infrastructure. On Wednesday, the head of the African Development Bank said it was causing enormous damage to the economies of the region.

Terrified Residents Flee as Dogs Eat Ebola Corpses

errified Residents Flee as Dogs Eat Ebola Corpses

Residents say dogs in the area were now eating some of the over 45 corpses that are yet to be removed to a crematorium or at a registered cemetery for proper burial

Wed, 08/27/2014 - 09:16 admin

45 Ebola Bodies Remain Dumped near River in Johnsonville

By: 

C.Y. Kwanue

The general Town Chief of Kissi Camp, Upper Johnsonville near Kpekpeh Town, over the weekend informed the Daily Observer that several dogs in the community have torn the plastic wrapped around corpses of Ebola victims and are now feeding on parts of the corpses exposed to them.
As such, Town Chief Tamba Tengbeh expressed fear of the subsequent outbreak of other diseases in the area since some of dogs are domesticated and could cause harm to the already frightened community dwellers.
Chief Tengbeh, in an exclusive interview with this newspaper on Sunday, also complained that the more than 2,000 residents of the area have been suffering an offensive odor of rotting corpses since the bodies were dumped in the nearby Kpanwein River by authorities from the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) without proper burial.
To that effect, Internal Affairs Minister Morris Dukuly, told this  newspaper via mobile phone a week ago that there is no corpse exposed to create a health hazard or environmental concerns for the Johnsonville residents.
He maintained that the MIA bought the parcel of land on which the dead bodies were dumped, and with that, “nobody can tell  anybody that the bodies will be removed since they have been under the ground for several weeks.”
MIA has up to date not disclosed to this paper the name of the person who sold the parcel of land on which the bodies were dumped;  nor have they disclosed the amount on money that was involved in the deal since the land was indeed found to be private property, owned by one Joseph  F. Dolo and others.  Mr. Dolo’s ownership to the parcel of the land in question has been confirmed by his initials marked on his cornerstones. His father, Emmanuel T. Cole, has also denied any knowledge of the MIA ‘land transaction’.

Cognizant of the health hazard upon the community dwellers as dogs were now feeding on some of corpses, Chief Tengbeh has with great fear for the spread of the disease, instructed some of the ‘vulnerable’ youths to cover the exposed bodies with red dirt.
He has appealed for government intervention to resolve the impasse in the community.
Compounding the problems for the  residents and the entire community, Chief Tengbeh said they lack safe drinking water and have also not been provided any Ebola preventive and protective materials.
According to him, some of the dogs that fed on those bodies have died, although this paper is yet to confirm that part of the report.
Guarded by heavily armed platoons of officers from the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) and the Police Support Unit (PSU) several weeks ago, two mini trucks conveyed the corpses of Ebola victims to be buried in Johnsonville.
This dumping of about 45 bodies on the bank of the Kpan-wein River under the heavy guard of police and soldiers  immediately created a stampede, with people running in all directions, for fear of being contaminated or afflicted with the Ebola disease.
The plan had been to bury the bodies in mass graves dug by a hired yellow machine.  But the machine unfortunately got stuck in the mud, where the property meets the mangrove. The yellow machine is yet to be removed since its owner has since gone into hiding  for fear of being attacked by the Ebola virus.

The Kpanwein River connects the Kpeh-Kpeh Town Community to Whein Town in the east and Chicken Soup Factory on Somalia Drive in the west, as well as Upper and Lower Johnsonville, and many other communities in and around Monrovia.
Since the first truckload of corpses arrived Saturday, August 2, residents of the nearby communities vehemently rejected the use of their land to dispose of the bodies.
An aggrieved Kpeh-Kpeh Town resident, Carey Daniel, told the Daily Observer that the exact plot of land where the graves are dug is a wetland on the bank of a river that is a source of water for many communities around there. They fear that their wells ---from which they get water for drinking and domestic use – will definitely be contaminated, exposing them to the same deadly Ebola and other diseases.
  Meanwhile, for fear that those dogs might spread the disease among the residents, many inhabitants have reportedly fled to other parts of Monrovia.  http://www.liberianobserver.com/news/terrified-residents-flee-dogs-eat-ebola-corpses

Ebola: MSF sends a response team to urgent Lokolia

What to do to fight against cholera after the MSF. Radio Okapi / Ph. John Bompengo

The NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is sending a team of emergency intervention to Lokolia, the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak on August 27th. Nathalie Gielen, coordinator of MSF / Kinshasa, told Radio Okapi that the team will try to isolate the suspected and confirmed cases of Ebola. It states that MSF team is already there. It was she who had made the samples sent for analysis to Kinshasa and have confirmed the Ebola virus.
"This is a team that made the assessment of the situation for a week and that made samples that were then sent for analysis. This team is always on hand and expects the rest of the team leaving tomorrow, "says Nathalie Gielen.
Another team of 17 people will join the first group to Lokolia "to start the activities of management."
The coordinator of MSF / Kinshasa says that this team brings "everything needed for water equipment, hygiene and sanitation."
"We also send medicines to relieve patients and we send all necessary personnel, doctors, nurses, logisticians, to be able to help the population affected by this population," she added... https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=en&ie=UTF8&prev=_t&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://radiookapi.net/actualite/2014/08/27/ebola-msf-depeche-une-equipe-dintervention-urgente-lokolia/&usg=ALkJrhjY2A2fg8AIBQbEHoJOKIZ5FSIrxg

 

Liberia: 4 West Point 'Looters' Tested Positive of Ebola

27 August 2014

The Minister of the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT), Lewis G. Brown, has disclosed that four of the protesters, who recently broke into and ransacked the Ebola Quarantine Center in the West Point Township, have been tested positive of the Ebola virus.
The protesters, who said there was no Ebola in Liberia, stormed and ransacked the Ebola Quarantine Center and made away with bloodstained mattresses and bed sheets after chasing away patients who were quarantined there.
Minister Brown, who did not give the identities of the protesters that he said got tested positive of Ebola, made the disclosure on Monday, 25 August when he spoke to UNMIL Radio.
Commenting on the government's efforts to sensitize residents about the Ebola disease, the MICAT boss said community residents are now actively involved in the dissemination of Ebola messages.
According to him, the government has conducted awareness workshops in various communities to determine the response of citizens, indicating that the people are now better situated in the fight against the spread of the virus.
He added that the government has set up a team to conduct investigation into the skirmishes in West Point after the area was placed in quarantine last week that led to the death of one person and wounding of several others."
In a related development, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf on Monday, August 25paid a visit to quarantined West Point community to further explain to the people the intent of the measures placed on their community.
In West Point, the Liberian President informed the residents that the measures placed on them were temporary and is only meant to stop the spread of the Ebola virus disease.
The President told the West Pointers that the government and its partners have arranged food supply and challenged the residents to remain calm as food and water distribution has already started.
President Sirleaf, as part of several measures already taken to stop transmission, last Tuesday, August 19, quarantined West Point and Dolo Town communities in Monrovia and lower Margibi County due to an outbreak in those communities. http://allafrica.com/stories/201408271539.html

Lufthansa Cargo is integrating Lagos into its network through twice-weekly freighter flights.

The airline announced in a statement on Tuesday that as from September 15, 2014, a Lufthansa Cargo MD-11 freighter would take off from Frankfurt for Lagos every Monday and Wednesday.

Ebola: Sick Corps Member Abandoned By Colleague

As the federal and state governments battle hard to contain the spread of the dreaded Ebola disease, a sick corps member in Ekiti was abandoned by colleagues after he slumped at the orientation camp. The Ekiti State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Olusola Fasuba however, allayed their fears when he said the corps member was only suffering from chronic fever.

“Although, information reaching my office from the ministry of youth and sports confirmed that a particular male corps member collapsed at the orientation camp.

“But, it was unfortunate that people around him ran away taking his sickness for the dreaded Ebola virus.

“Immediately I received the information, I swung into action by ensuring that the sick boy was immediately attended to by a team of health workers. They later discovered that he was suffering from chronic fever, the information they passed to me without wasting time. “But, I did not stop at that, at least to be sure of his correct state of health, his blood samples were taken and sent to Lagos. We received the results on Thursday indicating that he tested negative to the Ebola virus.

“The corps member has been taken away from the camp and is currently being kept at our isolated centre located within Oba Adejugbe General Hospital, Ado-Ekiti. “As I speak, I assure residents that the health of the boy in question is already improving, while he continues to show signs of good health far from Ebola,” he explained,” the commissioner explained.  http://ugokputu.blogspot.com/2014/08/ebola-sick-corps-member-abandoned-by.html

Sierra Leone News: Ebola is spreading – Dr. David Nabarro

United Nations Ebola Response Coordinator Dr. David Nabarro has said that the Ebola virus is spreading in many parts of the country.
He made this statement yesterday in a press briefing at the WHO country office, while addressing journalists.
He went further to say that the response is complicated and all need to do better to organize that response, so that it achieves the results quickly without causing more suffering,
Death and damage, therefore their focus is on organization, management and most importantly assuring that all the different efforts of Government and its partners are used as efficiently as it possibly can.
Dr. David Nabarro maintained that they have worked with the government at the highest level, including the President, in order to explore ways to continue to improve organization and that they worked with the partners as well while they are now going to upgrade all aspects of what the United Nations system is doing in a fully accountable manner, so that they get the scale up that is required.
He added that their visit to Sierra Leone has been short because they are trying to go to all four countries in the region and to report back quickly to the Director-General of the World Health Organization and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
He pointed out that the Ebola outbreak is the largest and most complex that they have ever known and is also a disease outbreak that has impacted not just on people but on the country and the World and what is happening in Sierra Leone and other countries in the region is a global issue.

He made it clear that the purpose of their visit is to understand the nature of the outbreak, as it is now and to identify ways in which the response can be stepped up, so that the outbreak can be stopped as quickly as possible. “There is also an effort to understand what the outbreak is doing to people and the economy, so that when the outbreak is stopped, we can all work hard to get the country back to economic growth and development which was going so well before Ebola came along,” he said.
The UN Ebola Response coordinator said they are anticipating partnership from the UN family, Government and partners with the focus on organization and management to really make certain that they contain the disease and bring it under control quickly.
The understandable decision by some countries not to fly in Ebola countries has had a huge operational impact on what is happening here and has enormous impact on WHO in bringing in facilities and other logistics which is now stuff making their job a lot harder.
He said that they have held a series of meetings with International Aviation bodies and airlines to see reason why they should continue to fly to Sierra Leone and other countries but it has been hard convincing them that there is nothing to fear.
Dr. Keiji Fakundu who is the WHO Assistant Director- General for global health security, said that they are basically in Sierra Leone to see how the situation has been evolving, take stock, and see where they are, what needs to be done and what needs to be changed.
He emphasized that they have two main task which are to stop the outbreak and to get the country back to normal. In that light, they have met with so many people and they have also met with the president, meet with doctors, see the clinics and know some of their challenges and get a broader perspective on what needs to be done.
He added that the situation is becoming challenging and difficult and they continue to see cases in places all over the country and their job is to stop it. “Ebola is not a mysterious disease and it transfers from person to person,” he stated.
Dr. Keiji said that when people are brought in the clinic for treatment earlier, they have a much better chance of surviving as there are people who have survived it.
He also explained how the disease can be contacted by body contact and body fluids.
On the new drugs, he said they had not been tested on humans and it becomes a difficult decision to make on their use, as nothing should be taken for granted.
By  Jay Willie & Nancy Koroma
Tuesday August 26, 2014  http://awoko.org/2014/08/26/sierra-leone-news-ebola-is-spreading-dr-david-nabarro/

Sierra Leone News: WHO gets new Country Rep.

The World Health Organization Country Representative Dr. Jacob Mafunda has been replaced by Dr. Daniel Kertesz. This information was disclosed by Dr. Keiji Fukundu who is the Director-General for Global Health Security, WHO, while answering to questions at a press briefing held yesterday at the WHO Country office.

In answering to questions posed by the press, Dr. Keiji Fukundu who is the Director -General for Global Health Security in the WHO, said that in the WHO system, they have representatives in many countries and they rotate in and out and no one stays in one country for the duration of their career and particularly when they have a situation that is really intense, as it is very tiring to be at the front line as a commander when you are in the midst of a very difficult war, so they have made a rotation of Dr. Mufunda, as he needs a rest and relaxation in another country, as this is what they do on a normal basis.

The New Country Representative of WHO, Dr. Daniel Kertesz in his statement started by thanking all for coming and announced that he is the successor to Dr. Mafunda. He thanked the government for the strides that they have made so far in making sure that the disease is stopped and he said that this is not only Dr. Mufunda”s fight but also his fight, as he is the new country representative.
 He said that he is very much looking forward to working with the UN family, the Government and all, in making sure that the disease is stopped, as this is an outbreak that has been here for some months and they will continue to rotate people, as and when the need arises, because when people are tired, they continue to make mistakes.
In answering to questions, Dr. David Nabarro who is the UN Ebola Response Coordinator disclosed that the health system and all it entails, is all what they need in this fight, after the outbreak, the process of getting a stronger health system will be in progress, as the country needs to strengthen its health system. For the next six months, it will not be business as usual, it will be putting all resources in making sure the disease is stopped
The effort to defeat Ebola is not a battle but a war that requires everybody working together effectively and hoped that it will be done in six months until the job is complete, as this is not just an issue for Sierra Leone but an issue for the world, as Sierra Leone had the best record of Economic and social development.
By Nancy Koroma
Tuesday August 26, 2014...   http://awoko.org/2014/08/26/sierra-leone-news-who-gets-new-country-rep/

Sierra Leone News: New Ebola center under construction in Kenema

The Section Chief of Konakpindibu Section in Nongowa chiefdom, Kenema District, Amara Soko Musa in collaboration with the Nongowa chiefdom authorities have provided suitable land for the construction of the Ebola Case Management camp and cemetery for Kenema district.
The land is situated at Niahun junction near Gelehun in the Nongowa chiefdom in Kenema district on the Kenema-Kailahun highway about eight miles from Kenema city.
Speaking to the press at the working site chief Amara Musa Soko said the construction of the Ebola Case Management camp in their section is part of their own contribution in the eradication of Ebola virus in the eastern region and the country at large.
He added that they have not receive any money from either the government, or nongovernmental organization for the acquisition of the land for the purpose of the Ebola Case Management camp construction and the cemetery for Kenema. He encourage his people of Konakpindibu to continue to accept that Ebola is real and is a killer disease that has no relation and if not control can easily spread fast.

The section chief Soko Musa appeal to the management of Sierra Leone Red Cross Society (SLRCS) to first consider the youth and other key workers in KonaKpindibu section when employing workers for services on the land adding that more than 85% of his  people are unemployed.
Earlier the program administrator SLRCS Henry Mukeh requested for burial site and recommended the Resident minister east Hon. Maya Moiwo Kaikai for the great role he is playing towards the fight against Ebola virus in the region and the speedy construction of the Ebola Case Management camp in the district. Mr. Henry Mukeh cautioned everyone to respect the rule and regulation of the health workers in other to contain the Ebola virus in the country.
The work is expected to be completed very soon though weather is hampering it progress.
Tuesday August 26, 2014

Information Minister Lewis Brown

Minister Brown: Journalists Still Subject to Curfew

Tue, 08/26/2014 - 07:38 admin

By: 

Alvin Worzi

In the wake of the nationwide curfew imposed to curtail the deadly Ebola virus by the Government of Liberia, the Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lewis Z. Brown has warned journalists across Liberia to abide by the established curfew hours and avoid any problems with security personnel.
Speaking at the Information Ministry’s weekly press briefing on Thursday, August 21, Minister Brown said the curfew announced by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf includes all journalists across the country.
“We have received calls and complaints from the media in a request that journalists be permitted go about on their normal professional activities during the curfew hours and the curfew is advised by the national security council and imposed by the office by the President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and so, we all must work along with those hours.”
The Information Minister said, there are four exemptions from the curfew -- health workers across the country, concessionaires operating in their various localities, travelers going to the airport and returning to Monrovia, utility workers across the country (LEC, LWSC, etc.). What is not included is excluded, Brown said.
“The curfew by government is intended to help health workers with the best atmosphere to carry out their work and also be able to move in those communities and take away suspected cases, including bodies.  The carriers of the deadly Ebola virus are our loved ones, partners and friends, and so we must take some actions and decisions that will help contain the virus,” Brown noted.

The government’s spokesman said, “All journalists across the country should follow my footsteps in getting home early to avoid any encounter with security people,” adding that there is no greater way to fight the virus and so, the government is using the necessary means to contain the virus among the people of Liberia.”

According to the Minister, the government has taken some actions to help contain the Ebola virus, including the quarantining of two communitites, (West Point and Dolo’s Town in Margibi County) and the deployment of some officers in other parts of the country.
He disclosed that the President has instructed the Commerce Ministry authorities to work with businesses within the quarantined areas to ensure a 50% reduction of basic commodities to help supply various homes as well as the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) for constant supply of water for people in the areas.
“We are working in collaboration with the General Services Agency to ensure that those who are selling rice in the West Point get their supply at a very low rate, because we cannot feed everyone in the area but will provide free rice to hospital and clinics in these areas,” Minister Brown added.
The media had been informed that the security apparatus was considering whether or not to add pressmen to the list of exemptions; but to date, according to the Information Ministry, journalists are still subject to the 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew. http://www.liberianobserver.com/security/minister-brown-journalists-still-subject-curfew

Red Cross duo tell of uphill Ebola war

Hilary Wong
Wednesday, August 27, 2014


The last two Red Cross volunteers to return from a monthlong stint in Ebola-ravaged Liberia said a broken health-care system and discrimination are making the battle against the killer virus more difficult in the West African nation.Public health specialist May Yeung Pui-shan and clinical psychologist Eliza Cheung Yee-lai, both from the Hong Kong Red Cross, were sent to Liberia on July 22 and arrived back on Friday. Three other volunteers sent in April returned the following month.
Yeung and Cheung were placed under medical surveillance for 21 days, the incubation period for the Ebola virus, after being checked by health workers at Chek Lap Kok airport.
The pair, who visited the capital Monrovia, and the counties of Bong and Monserrado, did not have any direct contact with patients but trained volunteers on the proper use of protective gear and in psychological counseling.
They said that in the country of more than 4 million people, fewer than 200 health workers were dealing with Ebola cases, and 60 of them have already succumbed to the deadly virus.
Cheung said the medical system in Liberia has broken down due to a lack of manpower, as well as protective gear and other equipment to deal with the outbreak, which started in March.
Even some doctors fled in fear. Many hospitals and clinics have also closed down.
"It was also very difficult for health workers to track down people who had close contact with Ebola patients because they are afraid of being discriminated against. They will hide instead of reporting they are family members or friends of patients," Yeung said. "On average we could just track two in each case."
Cheung also said superstitious locals think those infected by Ebola are possessed by "evil spirits." Others do not trust their own government and believe it made up the outbreak in order to receive foreign aid.
"We even saw Ebola patients dumped by their family, and corpses left on the street."
Cheung said she heard on the radio that even those pregnant were being turned away by hospitals since they would bleed. "They could therefore only give birth at home."
A shortage of food has made staples three times more expensive in places far from Monrovia. "Cargo ships transporting food do not dare berth in Liberia," Cheung said.
On the day the pair left Liberia, the government announced a nighttime curfew in Monrovia. This "heightened the horror in citizen's hearts because the last time such a curfew had been imposed was during the 1999 to 2003 civil war," Cheung said.
Of 1,082 people infected with Ebola in Liberia since March, 624 have died.
The total toll in West Africa stands at more than 1,400 with Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria the other worst-hit nations.