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| Ebola: Liberia shuts schools to tackle outbreak | Ebola: Liberia shuts schools to tackle outbreak |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Liberia's government has announced that is is closing down all schools across the country to stop the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. | Liberia's government has announced that is is closing down all schools across the country to stop the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. |
| Some communities would be placed under quarantine as well, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said. | |
| Non-essential government workers will be sent home for 20 days and the army deployed to enforce the measures. | Non-essential government workers will be sent home for 20 days and the army deployed to enforce the measures. |
| The number of people killed by the virus in West Africa has now reached 672, according to new UN figures. | The number of people killed by the virus in West Africa has now reached 672, according to new UN figures. |
| The BBC's West Africa correspondent Thomas Fessy says treatment facilities have reportedly been overwhelmed in the Liberian capital Monrovia. | |
| Some wards have already filled up, forcing health workers to treat some patients at their homes. | |
| President Sirleaf said that Friday 1 August would be a non-working day in Liberia to allow for the disinfection of all public facilities. | |
| "All non-essential staff - to be determined by the heads of ministries and agencies - are to be placed on 30 days' compulsory leave" she added. | |
| Rapid spread | |
| The US humanitarian organisation Peace Corps said it was withdrawing 340 volunteers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea because of the spread of the virus. | |
| Ebola kills up to 90% of those infected, but patients have a better chance of survival if they receive early treatment. | Ebola kills up to 90% of those infected, but patients have a better chance of survival if they receive early treatment. |
| It spreads through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids. | It spreads through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids. |
| The outbreak - the world's deadliest to date - was first reported in Guinea in February. It then spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone. | The outbreak - the world's deadliest to date - was first reported in Guinea in February. It then spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone. |
| Ebola virus disease (EVD) | Ebola virus disease (EVD) |