Ebola Continues its Deadly March Through West Africa

September 12, 2014 – The number of cases reported is well over 4,300 now with more than 2,300 having succumbed to the virus. In Liberia, where the picture below was taken celebrating independence day, the country of 4 million, has reported 2,046 cases with 1,224 deaths as of yesterday. If things continue this situation may lead to the collapse of the nation.

The Liberian government cannot handle the case load and no longer can contain and isolate those who have been exposed or become infected. Medical staff are getting infected and others are abandoning their post leaving patients to starve. There is only one doctor per 100,000 population so many who get infected are not even reported and they in turn infect others.

In Monrovia, the capital, there is a need for 1,000 beds for Ebola patients with only a quarter of those available. Unchecked the disease may victimize the entire country because institutions and government will be so overwhelmed the nation may fall apart.

Virology researchers are speculating that the virus could soon erupt throughout Africa because of the continent’s explosive population growth. The 19 previous outbreaks of this disease over the past 40 years have never had a better potential feeding ground. The rapid move to urbanization could give Ebola whole new urban populations to attack. African cities like Lagos, Nairobi, Kinshasa, Mogadishu, Johannesburg, and Cape Town could all be at risk. Just one traveler from the infected areas could reap havoc in the shantytowns and informal settlements of these cities with their lack of infrastructure, clean water, proper sanitation and health services.

And then there is the other frightening scenario. Ebola, a virus that only spreads through close contact could go airborne. The current levels of transmission are giving the virus lots of evolutionary opportunities with each new infection presenting viral loads in the trillions. Evolutionary mutations like those kinds of numbers. And that could soon mean an airborne mutation. That risk is real if the World Health Organization and the sophisticated medical world doesn’t check this current outbreak.

For now Liberia, the country, and its citizens, along with its immediate neighbours in West Africa, are in grave danger. This should be where the disease gets stopped. The United Nations is the logical place to put together a crisis strategy focused on ending the epidemic. I know many are trying but this must be kicked up the priority list or the 20,000 victim forecast may soon rise to 100,000 or more.

Related articles across the web

• More on the Ebola Front – Another Drug in Clinical Trial
• Ebola ‘threat to Liberia existence’
• In the Biomedical World There is an Elephant in the Room Called Ebola
• Ebola ‘devouring everything in its path’