The Ebola outbreak in West Africa is showing no signs of slowing down. The epidemic has already killed over 2,600 individuals since it started and 700 new cases of infection were reported during the past week. Of the countries affected, Sierra Leone is among the hardest hit by the deadly disease with over a thousand confirmed cases of infection.
In a bid to contain the disease and prevent additional infections and deaths, Sierra Leone began a three-day lockdown on Friday. Under the plan, no one of the country's 6 million people is allowed to go out of their homes for three days except for volunteers who will go door-to-door to deliver bars of soap and educate people about the deadly disease particularly on how it can be prevented.
Authorities also believe that the lockdown will result in the discovery of yet unreported cases of Ebola with the government already making the necessary preparations for the anticipated influx of patients after the Friday-to-Sunday national shutdown.
The normally busy streets in the nations' capital now appear deserted as residents take heed of the government's advice. Radio stations also repeatedly run jingles that raise awareness on Ebola and encourage the residents to stay at home as about 30,000 health workers and trained volunteers, some in their biohazard suits go house to house.
"Today, the life of everyone is at stake, but we will get over this difficulty if we all do what we have been asked to do," President Ernest Bai Koroma said on Thursday. "These are extraordinary times and extraordinary times require extraordinary measures."
Alhaji Alpha Kanu, Sierra Leone's minister of information, said that they believe the lockdown is the best way to identify individuals who were infected with the disease and separate them from people who are Ebola-free. Not everyone, however, is convinced that the strategy will work. International aids group Médecins Sans Frontières, for instance, said that the lockdown won't likely stop the spread of Ebola albeit senior United Nations envoy David Nabarro who leads the agency's efforts on the Ebola crisis said that the three-day exercise is not really a lockdown.
"Forced quarantines and lockdowns are driving people underground and jeopardizing the trust between people and health providers," the group said. "This is leading to the concealment of cases and is pushing the sick away from health systems."
Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that Ebola has already infected over 5,300 people and killed at least 2,600 in West Africa.
