Number of Ebola deaths in the West African trio-- Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone-- has reached 5,147, as of November 9, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). This is out of the 14,068 cases recorded by the WHO.
The frequency of new cases has not drastically increased in Guinea and Liberia, but it remains high in Sierra Leone, the health agency said.
"Transmission remains intense in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, and the frequency of new cases is still increasing in Sierra Leone," the WHO said in its situation report.
As of latest count, there have been some 421 new infections reported in Sierra Leone in the week to Nov. 9, especially in the west and north, the report said.
The disease is still spreading fast in Sierra Leone's capital of Freetown, with Koinadugu and Kambia northern regions now "emerging areas of concern", it added. Also, the dreaded virus is spreading rapidly in Macenta in Guinea's southwest near the Liberian border and to a lesser extent in Siguiri bordering Mali, the report said.
There have been a reported 97 new cases in Liberia in the week to Nov. 8. WHO said the Montserrado district which includes the capital Monrovia accounted for nearly half of the latest cases, while cases in Lofa county continue to decline.
Only 19 of 53 Ebola treatment centers planned in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone are in operation, with 140 teams conducting safe burials in the three countries with widespread and intense spread of the disease. WHO said there is a need for 370 trained teams to accomplish the said task.
Meanwhile. Mali has joined the fray of African countries now experiencing the havoc of Ebola. Around 90 people were quarantined across the Mali capital of Bamako on Wednesday, according to reports. This is after a 25-year-old nurse died of Ebola after treating a man suspected to have been infected with the disease.
A total of four confirmed and probable cases and four deaths happened in Mali, the WHO said. WHO is calling for vigilance in neighboring countries of hard-hit areas, especially with the increasing number of cases particularly in Sierra Leone.
