Liberia Declared Ebola-free

The World Health Organization (WHO) has
declared Liberia free of the Ebola virus, as
the country has had no new cases in 42
days. Last September, Liberia was seeing
400 cases a week, with hospitals full and
bodies lying in the streets. A public health
campaign was launched to stem the
epidemic, and the last confirmed death was
on 27 March. The Ebola outbreak has
claimed over 11,000 lives in the region, and
remains active in Guinea and Sierra Leone.
But new cases have been falling and the
UN's Ebola envoy, David Nabarro, called
progress against the disease in West Africa
"extraordinary".
He warned however that it would take time
to eliminate the outbreak completely.
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf expects her
counterparts in Guinea and Sierra Leone to
call to congratulate her on her victory over
a disease that swept through the region,
killing over 4,000 people in her war-
recovering country alone. Officials say it
was collective effort and resilience that
eventually
conquered Ebola. Ms Sirleaf is celebrating.
She is due to take a bus tour around the
capital thanking healthcare workers and
community people in a victory parade.
She also indicated how traumatised she and
the nation remain. "Even today if you hear
an ambulance siren you shake a little bit,"
she said.