IT'S SPREADING: Liberian dies in Morocco of Ebola

I've been pretty unsatisfied with Western media reports on the Ebola situation. Not enough on-the-ground facts.

So I decided to see what I would find in the African print media. Some of it is surprising. Some of it is down-right scary.

But let's start with what I think is the biggest news:

L iberian dies in Morocco of Ebola - Internal Affairs Minister discloses

MONROVIA - The Minister of Internal Affairs, Mr. Morris Dukuly, has disclosed that a Liberian has died of the deadly Ebola virus in Morocco.

...

Making the disclosure at a news conference held at the Ministry on Wednesday, July 30, 2014, Minister Dukuly, who is also the Vice Chairman on the National Ebola Taskforce, further disclosed that the deceased left the country two days before his death.

Although Minister Dukuly did not disclose the name of the Liberian, who he said died of Ebola in Morocco, he averred that this means that there are many more people who are carrying the disease unknowingly.

And then there are those who are carrying the disease and knowingly deny the possibility of infection...

Remember the American, Patrick Sawyer, who got on two planes and died in Nigeria? ( ‘He Could Have Brought Ebola Here’: Minnesota Widow on Her Husband )

Well, there's more to that story than what I read in Western media:

Patrick Sawyer's Final Hours in Lagos

Lagos, Nigeria - Barely 24 hours before his death, Patrick Sawyer had a rather strange - and in the words of medical and diplomatic sources here, “Indiscipline” encounter with nurses and health workers at First Consultants Hospital in Obalende, one of the most crowded parts of Lagos, a population of some 21 million inhabitants, FrontPageAfrica has learned.

Looking to get to the bottom of Sawyer’s strange ailment on the Asky Airline flight, which Sawyer transferred on in Togo, hospital officials say, he was tested for both malaria and HIV AIDS. However, when both tests came back negative, he was then asked whether he had made contact with any person with the Ebola Virus, to which Sawyer denied. Sawyer’s sister, Princess had died of the deadly virus on Monday, July 7, 2014 at the Catholic Hospital in Monrovia. On Friday, July 25, 2014, 18 days later, Sawyer died in Lagos.

... authorities at the First Consultants Hospital in Obalende decided that despite Sawyer’s denial, they would test him for Ebola, due to the fact that he had just arrived from Liberia, where there has been an outbreak of the disease with more than 100 deaths.

The hospital issued a statement this week stating that Sawyer was quarantined immediately after he was discovered to have been infected with the deadly virus...

...upon being told he had Ebola, Mr. Sawyer went into a rage, denying and objecting to the opinion of the medical experts. “He was so adamant and difficult that he took the tubes from his body and took off his pants and urinated on the health workers, forcing them to flee.

The hospital would later report that it resisted immense pressure to let out Sawyer from its hospital against the insistence from some higher-ups and conference organizers that he had a key role to play at the ECOWAS convention in Calabar, the Cross River State capital.

So not only did you have Sawyer deny he had any known contact with Ebola, but he had political pull to pressure the hospital for his release.

First Consultants said that it then went further to reach senior officials in the Office of the Secretary of Health of the USA who assisted it with contacts at the Centre for Disease Control and W.H.O Regional Laboratory Centre in Senegal. According to the hospital, the initial results from LUTH laboratory showed a signal of possible Ebola virus, but required confirmation.

The First Consultants statement noted that it was able to obtain confirmation of Ebola virus disease, (Zaire strain) after working with the state, federal and international agencies. Sawyer was pronounced dead at 6:50 AM Nigeria time, on July 25 and all agencies were properly notified.

...

In the aftermath of Sawyer’s death, diplomatic, ECOWAS and medical authorities here are baffled over Sawyer’s deception, especially armed with new information that his sister, Princess had died of the deadly virus and his denial. Finance Ministry sources in Monrovia are in quiet murmur over what they feel was a letdown by Sawyer for not being forthcoming with his peers he worked with.

One part denial. One part deception. One part panic.

And he could have made it to Minnesota.

That hot zone chill now reaches America, with word that the same man was scheduled to fly to Minneapolis in time for an August 16 party celebrating the birthdays of two of his three young daughters.

Patrick Sawyer was a naturalized U.S. citizen who worked for the Finance Ministry of his native Liberia and returned home to his wife and children in Coon Rapids, Minnesota, whenever he could. He almost certainly would have boarded that flight to Minneapolis had he remained at least outwardly healthy enough not to exhibit symptoms.

One nightmare scenario would have been for him to go ahead with the birthday party for his daughters even though he was feeling a little flu-ish and maybe dish out cake and ice cream to his little girls before anybody imagined he might be carrying the deadly virus from distant West Africa.

Link.

But Sawyer's story is just one of many others I read from the region that spell real trouble for the road ahead.

Take for example this one:

Health Ministry Failing to Pick up Dead Bodies

As the deadly Ebola virus continues to spread, Liberians are panicking as dead bodies of people who have died from unknown causes continue to dawdle around the city of Monrovia and its environs without the Ministry of Health collecting them. The situation is creating Health hazard as communities worry that Liberia’s Health ministry is incapacitated to cater to the Ebola crisis.

Following the government of Liberia’s declaration of a national health emergency in the face of the deadly Ebola outbreak that has killed close to 130 Liberians and an entire government ministry at risk because of an employee that died of the deadly disease in Nigeria, there have been reports of dead bodies lying around with no effort by the ministry of health to remove them.

And now it looks like doctors and nurses are running scared. Foerign aid workers are leaving and local healthcare workers are either refusing to treat patients or will refuse to do so.

Liberia's Internal Affairs Minister had this to say to traditional chiefs in his country:

“You are the local leaders, tell your people to please support health workers and not to chase them. Samaritan Purse on yesterday said it will not continue because its workers were attacked and chased in Lofa with one of their staff wounded in the process in Foya. Please tell them to stop playing with dead bodies”

L ink.

And this story appeared in Ghana:

We will run from Ebola patients – Doctor

A doctor at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Dodi Abdallah has confessed that he and his colleagues will run away if Ebola patients report at the infirmary.

“Monitoring comments from my colleagues on social media; I think that many doctors will run away at the emergency if a patient or with suspected Ebola comes in. I mean we really, really don’t feel safe. I am not saying Korle Bu is not doing anything but I think that our system itself is not ready for Ebola.”

So when the World Health Organization says, "Ebola moving faster than we can control", these stories help explain why.

The World Health Organization warned west Africa's Ebola-hit nations on Friday that the epidemic was spiraling out of control and could spread to other countries, causing "catastrophic" loss of life and severe economic disruption.

WHO chief Margaret Chan told the leaders of Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia at a regional summit the response to the epidemic had been "woefully inadequate", revealing that the outbreak was "moving faster than our efforts to control it".

God help us all.

a reply to: loam

Excellent point you bring to the forefront. You ... can't ... trust ... the ... infected.

Have they stopped all outbound International flights from these countries? Have all African countries stopped outbound International passengers who have been to these three hot spot countries, of course not,

The reality is they know there is no stopping a true outbreak, is this it? Only time will tell and those here on ATS like yourself who are prepared to dig a little deeper than the mainstream media is permitted to spoon feed the masses.

Thanks for the effort.

a reply to: loam

if he arrived in the country 2 days before he died i take it he would have been at the most communicable time for the virus to spread....hmmm the plot thickens

a reply to: subtopia

I'm still trying to get a handle on what air travel is restricted. With a few exceptions, it still looks fairly open.

I think people are fleeing, likely expecting travel will be made more difficult in the near future.

I know they test at some of these airports, but it's clear the tests are NOT 100% RELIABLE.

For example, see this story published today:

Report: Catholic Hospital Boss tested positive of Ebola

MONROVIA - The Heritage has reliably learnt that the Hospital Director of the Saint Joseph Catholic Hospital, a Catholic run hospital in Liberia, has been tested positive of the deadly Ebola virus.

...

According to cogent information gathered by this paper, Rev. Brother Patrick Nshamdze, was tested positive after he supposedly came in contact with a patient who died from the virus.

Our information divulged that on the 17th of this month, his specimen was taken and the result, which came on the next day (July 18), proved negative.

Not being satisfied, the report further divulged, the ailing Catholic hospital director decided to seek further treatment abroad, but his trip was subjected to Ebola test.

It was based on this that he did another test on Tuesday, July 29, 2014, which proved positive, contrary to the first test he underwent.

So testing anyone, including travelers, is not a fail-safe.

Food for thought.

I guess the reality is air travel can't be shut down. The cat is already well out of the bag.

This is the time where they should lock down all international traffic. People would be pissed no doubt, but what are we chancing in the hopes that people won't get pissed off?? I for one... do NOT think that it's a fair, honest, or even moral trade off. Yet here we are, with the doors still open and the welcome mat still set out.

On the upside for those in power... Let this disease land here and start spreading. People WILL BEG for martial law and FEMA (for your own safety) camps. All of those I coffins and rounds of ammunition?? This scenario would make sure neither of those would go to waste.

Normally I do not jump on the conspiracy trail quite that quickly, but this is just a hot mess.

a reply to: loam

Just relax and keep reading ...

IFL Science on the Current Ebola Outbreak

why cant they just suit up and stay that way with armed and suited guards have 1 suit delivered per house that person can collect food etc everyone else stay inside for 21 days sod it let the whole world hermit for 21 days with the lights off and see if aliens come down to have sticky beak

a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

originally posted by: Kangaruex4Ewe
...this is just a hot mess.

Sure is.

One thing that has really bothered me is the number of senior medical professionals getting sick. I get that some of them are working in some pretty tough conditions...no running water, etc.

But that doesn't seem the case with all of them. For example, the hospital in the article above.

a reply to: Aqualung2012

originally posted by: Aqualung2012
Just relax and keep reading ...

IFL Science on the Current Ebola Outbreak

From your source:

For those living in developed countries, such as the US, it is not likely that the virus will spread. CDC Director Thomas Frieden has said that there is not the potential for Ebola to spread throughout the US like it has in West Africa. The virus can only be transmitted when someone is sick, and all major ports of entry have received quarantine stations to find travelers who may be ill.

So what about those who are NOT visibly sick and travel during the incubation period? Do you honestly think what they are saying eliminates the risk? That's very trusting of you.

wow more crazy stories coming out. By crazy I mean cray cray, what's with Sawyer's outburst and peeing on medical staff? Along with the "infected" breaking out of an isolation ward being discussed in this thread www.abovetopsecret.com.... They were vomiting, peeing and pooping every where and some escaped into the streets. Does Ebola drive people mad so they purposely spread the infection? It seams to be what is happening to me.

a reply to: weirdguy

I don't know.

I was wondering if there was a cultural significance to urinating on people?

anyone else notice how hard they are pushing HUMIRA for everything. from pain to crohns and many many more. my mom takes to for arthritis and the warnings are scary.

How much does humira compromise my immune system

a reply to: loam

The quoted statement you've highlighted above is true, but your point is also valid. However, I do trust in the vast contrast between Africa and the USA and Europe in terms of hygiene practices and knowledge of viral infections.

Also, considering what we know about this virus, I would say those "not visibly sick" would spread far less virus than those suffering the effects.
(See the other recent thread about fleeing patients)

Travel restrictions and quarantine procedures are appropriate, absolutely... But not all caps screaming about it spreading with each new city... Yes, it's gonna spread. No, is not the zombie apocalypse.

The focus of the article I shared is on the spread factor, which is not proportional between a "Third World environment" and a "First World" one, for many reasons. Look into IFL Science... They are a great source.




...On a side note: The fever that this strain of Ebola can inflict on a human sounds like it could absolutely cause "insanity" due to sheer pain and discomfort, especially with inadequate/late-stage treatment.

a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

They are going to wait for the first body to turn up in the US before they cut any revenue streams. Pro-active is not in the vocabulary of a good solid capitalist. Re-Active is the American way...and by then its going to be TOO LATE !...I cant wait for the new politically correct terms to show up like... "Soft Pandemic"or"Pandemic-ish" and "Attention...Today is a Stage "PINK" Ebola Alert."

a reply to: subtopia

There is now this:

West Africa to seal Ebola regions

West Africa's Ebola-hit nations have agreed to impose a cross-border isolation zone at the epicentre of the world's worst-ever outbreak, amid warnings that the deadly epidemic is spiralling out of control.

The announcement came at an emergency summit in the Guinean capital on Friday to discuss the outbreak, which has killed more than 700 people, with the World Health Organization warning Ebola could cause "catastrophic" loss of life and severe economic disruption if it continued to spread.

"We have agreed to take important and extraordinary actions at the inter-country level to focus on cross-border regions that have more than 70 percent of the epidemic," said Hadja Saran Darab, the secretary-general of the Mano River Union bloc grouping the nations.

"These areas will be isolated by police and military. The people in these areas being isolated will be provided with material support," she said at the meeting in Conakry.

a reply to: loam

That was just a SOCIOPATHS reaction to finding out he was about to die...He's gonna try and drag as many people down with him as he can ...misery needs company.

a reply to: Aqualung2012

originally posted by: Aqualung2012
Yes, it's gonna spread. No, is not the zombie apocalypse.

Well, I don't think it's the zombie apocalypse either.

But I also don't think it's just another Monday.

The current epidemic has gotten as bad as it has because people over there didn't take it seriously. Let's not make the same mistake here.