Sierra Leone quarantines one million ahead of UN Ebola talks

Yahoo/AFP ^ | 9/25/2014 | Rod Mac Johnson

[mojito]

Freetown (AFP) - Sierra Leone began a quarantine of more than one million people Thursday in the largest open-ended lockdown in the Ebola outbreak, as world leaders met to discuss the crisis at the United Nations.

The northern districts of Port Loko and Bombali have been closed off indefinitely along with the southern district of Moyamba -- effectively sealing in around 1.2 million people.

With the eastern districts of Kenema and Kailahun already under quarantine, more than a third of the population of six million -- in five of the nation's 14 districts -- now finds itself unable to move freely.

[mojito]

1.2 million frightened, angry, trapped people.

What could possibly go wrong?

[Obadiah]

What could go wrong? Uh, not much, just look at the New Orleans Superdome during Katrina...

Er, wait. Never mind.

[The Duke]

Ferguson, MO on steriods(!)

[Darksheare]

I thought their three day “quarantine” was a “success”?

[mojito]

It was clearly such a success that it needed to be vastly expanded.

[kidd]

1.2 million frightened, angry, trapped Muslims (predominantly).

What could possibly go wrong?

[GeronL]

They could do it here to, possibly condemning tens of thousands of those not infected to death. Remember the lock-down in Boston?

[BenLurkin]

So the purpose of the three day “lockdown” and door to door “informational” visits was really to identify subjects for quarantine.

Wonder whose idea that was.

[mojito]

Ping.

[lonevoice]

1.2 million frightened, angry, trapped people. What could possibly go wrong?

Including those superstitious tribal people who believe people aren't really sick, but are being detained in hospitals so that cannibals can eat them.

[Mom MD]

ping

[bgill]

At the other extreme, obola in flying them into the US every day on the hour and in between.

[blackdog]

Now you know what the 3,000 / I mean soon to be 30,000 US Troops are for. It’s not to build hospitals.

[tet68]

With the eastern districts of Kenema and Kailahun already under quarantine, more than a third of the population of six million

Um, isn’t that more like 2 million?
Just saying.
I get the feeling this isn’t going to turn out well,
it may in fact exacerbate the spread of ebola to
a captive population, not to mention fear, hysteria,
and general civil unrest.

We need to learn from what happens, cause it certainly
could happen here.

[Darksheare]

After all, three days is adequate for a virus with a 21 day incubation period..

[silverleaf]

nor to worry president ebola sending 3,00 US troops over there to be stationed in the ministry of defense in a “humanitarian role”

confining angry and dying people in their death zones

but they will have NO contact with any patients

nossir

[Smokin' Joe]

Ping…

A link to this thread has been posted on the Ebola Surveillance Thread

[21twelve]

Well sure it’s 21 days that is really needed. But do you think ANYONE would stand for that? So they do 3 days, to show the people that their leaders are concerned for them.

Sort of like us with our high unemployment, and Obola gets his photo taken eating an ice cream cone to show how committed he is to business.

And then afterwards, when their efforts fail they can say “We tried, and our intentions were good....”

[null and void]

Eeeee-bolllll-aaaaaa ping!

Bring Out Your Dead

We’re gonna need

a bigger cart!

Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.

The purpose of the “Bring Out Your Dead” ping list (formerly the “Ebola” ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.

So far the false positive rate is 100%.

At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the “Bring Out Your Dead” threads will miss the beginning entirely.

*sigh* Such is life, and death...

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!