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| Nations Intensify Efforts to Suppress Ebola Outbreak in West Africa | |
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| ABUJA, Nigeria — West African leaders quickened the pace of emergency efforts on Thursday in response to a mounting tally of fatalities from the worst known outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus, canceling travel plans and authorizing measures to combat the disease including house-to-house searches and the deployment of the army and the police. | ABUJA, Nigeria — West African leaders quickened the pace of emergency efforts on Thursday in response to a mounting tally of fatalities from the worst known outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus, canceling travel plans and authorizing measures to combat the disease including house-to-house searches and the deployment of the army and the police. |
| The World Health Organization said the death toll had risen to 729 from 672, after 57 more people died during a four-day period between July 24 and 27 in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation. In the same period, 122 new cases were detected, bringing the total of confirmed and probably infected patients to 1,323. The toll is the highest in a single outbreak since the virus was identified almost four decades ago. | The World Health Organization said the death toll had risen to 729 from 672, after 57 more people died during a four-day period between July 24 and 27 in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation. In the same period, 122 new cases were detected, bringing the total of confirmed and probably infected patients to 1,323. The toll is the highest in a single outbreak since the virus was identified almost four decades ago. |
| Federal health officials in the United States on Thursday advised Americans to avoid nonessential travel to the West African countries Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia because of the Ebola virus outbreak. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a “Level 3” warning, its most serious type of travel notice, indicating “high risk” to visitors in the affected countries. This kind of advisory is uncommon and reserved for grave situations: It has been used in the past for the outbreak of the highly contagious respiratory disease SARS, and for the earthquake in Haiti. | |
| Desperate to contain the outbreak, President Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra Leone declared a public health emergency calling for the deployment of security forces to quarantine the epicenters of infection. He also said he would not be making a planned visit to the United States. | Desperate to contain the outbreak, President Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra Leone declared a public health emergency calling for the deployment of security forces to quarantine the epicenters of infection. He also said he would not be making a planned visit to the United States. |
| His actions followed steps announced in Liberia to close schools, put nonessential government workers on compulsory leave for 30 days and order the deployment of security forces to combat the outbreak. The Peace Corps, an outreach program run by the United States government, said it was withdrawing its 340 volunteers from the three countries most affected by the virus. | His actions followed steps announced in Liberia to close schools, put nonessential government workers on compulsory leave for 30 days and order the deployment of security forces to combat the outbreak. The Peace Corps, an outreach program run by the United States government, said it was withdrawing its 340 volunteers from the three countries most affected by the virus. |
| “The epidemic is very big, very dispersed,” said Dr. Hilde de Clerck, the interim emergency coordinator in Sierra Leone for Doctors Without Borders. “It seems logical that the country is reacting. I do understand that the central government has to do something. Cases are now being reported in more southern regions. There is a geographical spread. We do see that it is several districts that are hit now.” | “The epidemic is very big, very dispersed,” said Dr. Hilde de Clerck, the interim emergency coordinator in Sierra Leone for Doctors Without Borders. “It seems logical that the country is reacting. I do understand that the central government has to do something. Cases are now being reported in more southern regions. There is a geographical spread. We do see that it is several districts that are hit now.” |
| Nigeria recorded its only known death from Ebola when an American working in Liberia died there after landing in Lagos earlier this month. The airport authorities said on Thursday they had begun checking passengers arriving from the three main affected countries — Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea — for high temperatures, and would order compulsory blood tests for those with worrisome symptoms. Airport checks are also in force in Sierra Leone, and Ghana announced new screening procedures on Thursday. | Nigeria recorded its only known death from Ebola when an American working in Liberia died there after landing in Lagos earlier this month. The airport authorities said on Thursday they had begun checking passengers arriving from the three main affected countries — Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea — for high temperatures, and would order compulsory blood tests for those with worrisome symptoms. Airport checks are also in force in Sierra Leone, and Ghana announced new screening procedures on Thursday. |
| In an address to the nation in Sierra Leone posted late Wednesday on the presidential website, Mr. Koroma said the emergency would “enable us take a more robust approach to deal with the Ebola outbreak.” | In an address to the nation in Sierra Leone posted late Wednesday on the presidential website, Mr. Koroma said the emergency would “enable us take a more robust approach to deal with the Ebola outbreak.” |
| Mr. Koroma, who had been planning to attend a United States-Africa summit meeting in Washington, said that he would instead travel to Guinea on Friday to discuss a regional response to the outbreak. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia was also reported to have canceled her attendance at the gathering in Washington. President Alpha Condé of Guinea still plans to attend, a spokeswoman at the Guinea Embassy in Washington confirmed on Thursday. | Mr. Koroma, who had been planning to attend a United States-Africa summit meeting in Washington, said that he would instead travel to Guinea on Friday to discuss a regional response to the outbreak. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia was also reported to have canceled her attendance at the gathering in Washington. President Alpha Condé of Guinea still plans to attend, a spokeswoman at the Guinea Embassy in Washington confirmed on Thursday. |
| “We need to tell everyone that the epidemic is here, it is happening, and it is serious,” said Amara Jambai, the director of prevention and control at the Sierra Leone Health Ministry. | “We need to tell everyone that the epidemic is here, it is happening, and it is serious,” said Amara Jambai, the director of prevention and control at the Sierra Leone Health Ministry. |
| In the address, Mr. Koroma said security forces would be deployed to support health professionals and that “all epicenters of the disease will be quarantined” along with “localities and homes where the disease is identified.” The measures would remain in force for 60 to 90 days. | In the address, Mr. Koroma said security forces would be deployed to support health professionals and that “all epicenters of the disease will be quarantined” along with “localities and homes where the disease is identified.” The measures would remain in force for 60 to 90 days. |
| Public meetings will be restricted, houses will be searched for infected people, Parliament will be recalled and top officials will be obliged to cancel all but essential overseas travel. The measures also promised “active surveillance” to “trace and quarantine Ebola victims and suspects.” | Public meetings will be restricted, houses will be searched for infected people, Parliament will be recalled and top officials will be obliged to cancel all but essential overseas travel. The measures also promised “active surveillance” to “trace and quarantine Ebola victims and suspects.” |
| “The disease is beyond the scope of any one country, or community to defeat,” Mr. Koroma said. “Its social, economic, psychological and security implications require scaling up measures at international, national, interagency and community levels. Extraordinary challenges require extraordinary measures.” | “The disease is beyond the scope of any one country, or community to defeat,” Mr. Koroma said. “Its social, economic, psychological and security implications require scaling up measures at international, national, interagency and community levels. Extraordinary challenges require extraordinary measures.” |
| He added: “Sierra Leone is in a great fight. We are a resilient people. And we must not fail. The sustainability of our actions for prosperity depends on winning this fight. Failure is not an option.” | He added: “Sierra Leone is in a great fight. We are a resilient people. And we must not fail. The sustainability of our actions for prosperity depends on winning this fight. Failure is not an option.” |
| With reports of the disease spreading around the world and graphic images of people suffering, there was some concern that the disease could spread much farther afield, including to airports in Britain and elsewhere in Europe. | With reports of the disease spreading around the world and graphic images of people suffering, there was some concern that the disease could spread much farther afield, including to airports in Britain and elsewhere in Europe. |
| Lucy Moreton, the head of the Immigration Service Union, which represents immigration staff in Britain, said there were concerns about how staff should react if they suspected that a traveler had been infected. “There is no health facility at the border, there is no containment facility and until extremely recently there has been no guidance issued to staff at all as to what they should do,” she said. | Lucy Moreton, the head of the Immigration Service Union, which represents immigration staff in Britain, said there were concerns about how staff should react if they suspected that a traveler had been infected. “There is no health facility at the border, there is no containment facility and until extremely recently there has been no guidance issued to staff at all as to what they should do,” she said. |
| Governments, experts and international bodies sought to tamp down the worries. | Governments, experts and international bodies sought to tamp down the worries. |
| Dr. Peter Piot, co-discoverer of the virus and the director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said there was little risk. | Dr. Peter Piot, co-discoverer of the virus and the director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said there was little risk. |
| “Spreading in the population here, I’m not that worried about it,” he told Agence France-Presse. | “Spreading in the population here, I’m not that worried about it,” he told Agence France-Presse. |
| “I wouldn’t be worried to sit next to someone with Ebola virus on the Tube as long as they don’t vomit on you or something,” he said, referring to London’s underground train system. “This is an infection that requires very close contact.” | “I wouldn’t be worried to sit next to someone with Ebola virus on the Tube as long as they don’t vomit on you or something,” he said, referring to London’s underground train system. “This is an infection that requires very close contact.” |
| The French minister of health, Marisol Touraine, offered a similar assessment in an interview with the daily newspaper Le Parisien on Thursday, saying the risk of importing the virus into Europe was low, and that no such case had been documented. Nevertheless, she called for extreme vigilance against an ailment she characterized as both “very serious” and “very contagious.” | The French minister of health, Marisol Touraine, offered a similar assessment in an interview with the daily newspaper Le Parisien on Thursday, saying the risk of importing the virus into Europe was low, and that no such case had been documented. Nevertheless, she called for extreme vigilance against an ailment she characterized as both “very serious” and “very contagious.” |
| In Geneva, the International Air Transport Association, which represents most of the world’s major airlines, also played down the hazards outside the affected region in West Africa, saying in a statement on Thursday that the World Health Organization had not recommended travel restrictions or border closures, and that the risk for travelers was low. | In Geneva, the International Air Transport Association, which represents most of the world’s major airlines, also played down the hazards outside the affected region in West Africa, saying in a statement on Thursday that the World Health Organization had not recommended travel restrictions or border closures, and that the risk for travelers was low. |
| “In the rare event that a person infected with the Ebola virus was unknowingly transported by air, W.H.O. advises that the risks to other passengers are low,” the statement said. | “In the rare event that a person infected with the Ebola virus was unknowingly transported by air, W.H.O. advises that the risks to other passengers are low,” the statement said. |
| Ebola is spread only by people with severe symptoms that include vomiting, diarrhea, impaired kidney and liver function and finally internal and external bleeding, the statement said. “It is highly unlikely that someone suffering such symptoms would feel well enough to travel.” | Ebola is spread only by people with severe symptoms that include vomiting, diarrhea, impaired kidney and liver function and finally internal and external bleeding, the statement said. “It is highly unlikely that someone suffering such symptoms would feel well enough to travel.” |
| In a poignant episode, the university clinic in Hamburg-Eppendorf in Germany, which specializes in tropical viruses, said on Tuesday that it had been asked by the government of Sierra Leone to treat its leading doctor after he came down with the disease. | In a poignant episode, the university clinic in Hamburg-Eppendorf in Germany, which specializes in tropical viruses, said on Tuesday that it had been asked by the government of Sierra Leone to treat its leading doctor after he came down with the disease. |
| Physicians prepared a special isolation station to receive the patient, who at the time was too weak to make the journey to Germany, the clinic said. Later that day, the chief medical officer in Sierra Leone was quoted by Reuters as saying the doctor, Sheik Umar Khan, had died of the virus. | Physicians prepared a special isolation station to receive the patient, who at the time was too weak to make the journey to Germany, the clinic said. Later that day, the chief medical officer in Sierra Leone was quoted by Reuters as saying the doctor, Sheik Umar Khan, had died of the virus. |