Facing Death Without Spreading Disease

The most “intense” Ebola epidemic in the world, as the World Health Organization puts it, can now be found in Sierra Leone, which is witnessing more than 500 laboratory-confirmed new cases per week, and hundreds more suspected and uncounted infections. The virus is spreading all over the country, but about half of new cases are arising in the capital city of Freetown and neighboring districts. When I was in Freetown three weeks ago the epidemic situation felt dire, but the latest statistics reveal catastrophe.

As these latest WHO graphs show, Sierra Leone’s epidemic is soaring, even as Ebola is diminishing in neighboring Liberia and Guinea.