Ebola
Liberia, once the
hardest-hit country in the Ebola outbreak, released its last Ebola
patient on March 5. It has now begun a 42-day countdown and if no new
cases are found in that period, it will be declared Ebola-free according
to WHO standards. To mark the epidemic's downturn, Liberian President
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf re-opened the country's borders with neighboring
countries. Ambulances in Liberia have also been dispatched to help stop
Ebola in Sierra Leone and the government recently bought a 25-acre plot
of land outside the capital to bury Ebola victims
Both Guinea and Sierra Leone
are still reporting dozens of new cases every week and the number of
Ebola deaths taking place outside of hospitals remains high, suggesting
that people are wary of seeking help or are hiding cases. In both
countries there are still regular attacks against Western aid workers
and officials are unable to track where the Ebola virus is spreading.
