Liberia's deadest ends: Liberia officially declared Ebola-free

The World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that there has been no new cases of Ebola in Liberia in 42 days, officially clearing the way for WHO to declare it Ebola-free. However, vigilance and cautious should still be maintained.

In Liberia there were more than 4,716 deaths from Ebola (out of about 10,500 cases) since its outbreak in early 2014, which included 189 health workers. It was estimated that almost 3,300 children lost one or both parents during the epidemic.

The number of cases in Liberia was more than its neighbouring countries in West Africa. Guinea and Sierra Leone continue to record new cases, taking the toll across West Africa to 11,022 lives lost. Recently five new cases were diagnosed, but only after their deaths, thereby reducing the critical time to identify people who may have come into contact with them. A limited number of cases occurred in Nigeria, Mali and Senegal.

The incubation period is about 24 days (2-3 weeks in general), so at 42 days Liberia has passed a critical stage. WHO has praised Liberia’s efforts to mitigate the spread of Ebola, largely due to a “collective effort” of hand-washing stations, care-centres, billboards advertizing health precautions, and strict government controls including the cremation of bodies.

It was the deadliest outbreak of the illness in history. Ebola is a viral illness. The initial symptoms are sudden fever, intense weakness, muscle pain and sore throat. The next stage includes vomiting, diarrhoea and internal bleeding. It is spread by direct contact with infected blood, bodily fluids or organs, or indirectly through contact with contaminated environments. It was first detected in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976. Other countries have had cases, such as South Sudan, Gabon, Uganda, and South Africa, from 1976 to 2013, but the 2014 cases stemmed from West Africa.

The United Nations called Liberia’s control of Ebola a “monumental” achievement. For a country to report the highest number of cases, and subsequently limit the contagion within a short time – the “interruption of transmission” – was a remarkable achievement for the longest, largest, and most complex outbreak in history.

For a community scared by such a virulent illness and the sight of masked protective-clothed workers, the greatest fight back was due to the trust of the nation. The fact that family members trusted responders and health authorities – instead of attacking or blaming them – enabled the first wave of treatment. The government also established emergency measures such as cremation, which communities accepted. Hence, community strength was a vital component in mitigating the epidemic.

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Martina Nicolls is the author of “Liberia’s Deadest Ends” (2012), which describes the rise of Liberia’s recovery and reconstruction after years of civil conflict.

The author Graham Greene (1904-1991) first coined the phrase “deadest ends” in his 1935 novel Journey Without Maps about his travels in Liberia.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).