Ebola patients flee attack on clinic in Liberia

Seventeen patients infected with Ebola are unaccounted for after fleeing an armed raid on a quarantine centre in Monrovia by men who claim the epidemic is a fiction.

Ebola patients missing in Liberia

Seventeen Ebola patients are missing after fleeing an attack on an isolation ward in Monrovia by armed youths claiming the epidemic does not exist.

"They broke down the door and looted the place. The patients have all gone," according to a witness at the scene of the attack on the outskirts of the Liberian capital.

The report has been confirmed by residents and the head of Health Workers Association of Liberia, George Williams.

Williams said on Sunday the unit housed 29 patients who "had all tested positive for Ebola" and were receiving preliminary treatment before being taken to hospital.

"Of the 29 patients, 17 fled last night (after the assault). Nine died four days ago and three others were yesterday (Saturday) taken by force by their relatives" from the centre, he said.

The attackers, mostly young men armed with clubs, shouted that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf "is broke" and "there's no Ebola" in Liberia as they broke into the unit in a Monrovia suburb, Wesseh said.

Residents had opposed the creation of the centre, set up by health authorities in part of the city considered an epicentre of the Ebola outbreak in the Liberian capital.

"We told them not to (build) their camp here. They didn't listen to us," said a young resident, who declined to give his name.

"We don't believe in this Ebola outbreak."

The Ebola outbreak, the worst since the virus first appeared in 1976, has claimed 1145 lives in five months, according to the UN World Health Organization's latest figures as of August 13: 413 in Liberia, 380 in Guinea, 348 in Sierra Leone and four in Nigeria.


Share

2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world