Sierra Leone leader Ernest Bai Koroma declared a state of emergency yesterday and as the country struggled to contain the deadly Ebola epidemic.
The impoverished country, along with neighbouring Guinea and Liberia, is struggling to contain an epidemic that has infected 1,200 people and left 672 dead across the region since the start of the year. “Extraordinary challenges require extraordinary measures. The Ebola virus disease poses an extraordinary challenge to our nation,” Koroma said in a televised address to the nation.
Koroma said he had cancelled a trip to a summit of around 50 African leaders in Washington DC next week. He announced a raft of measures as part of the state of emergency, including quarantining Ebola-hit areas and deploying security forces to protect medical workers. The measures would be in place initially for 60 to 90 days, and then be reassessed.
