Government notes with satisfaction that the three-day stay at home “ose –to - ose ebola tok” campaign which took place from 19th to 21st September, 2014 achieved more than 75% of its intended target of reaching 1.5 million households across the country with the correct information on Ebola.
His excellency the president wishes to express his sincere thanks and appreciation to the people of sierra leone and to our international friends and partners for their support and cooperation in making the exercise a success.
The exercise provided a unique opportunity for government to articulate the harsh reality of Ebola on the ground and also obtain a candid assessment of the situation household by household. The true picture portrays a situation that is worse than what was being reflected in reports and reveals that there are more infected persons in the community. With the emerging intensity of hot spots in Port Loko, bombali and Moyamba districts, there is a desperate need to step up our response to this dreaded disease. The prognosis is that without additional interventions or changes in community behaviour, the numbers will increase exponentially and the situation will rapidly deteriorate.
Pursuant to the public emergency regulations, 2014 contained in constitutional instrument no. 5 of 2014 government has decided to implement the following measures:
(i) the Port Loko, Bombali and Moyamba districts are isolated with immediate effect. The general public is also reminded that Kenema and Kailahun districts remain isolated. Corridors for travel to and from non-quarantined districts are hereby established, but vehicles and travellers must not alight within the quarantined districts, and must only travel along the corridors between 9.00 a.m and 5.00 p.m;
(ii) within the Marampa, Buya Romende, Maforki, Bkm, Koya and Masimera chiefdoms of Port Loko district; the Bombali Shebora, Makarie Gbanti, Gbendembu Gowahun and Paki Masabong chiefdoms of Bombali district; and the Fakunya, Lower Banta and Bumpeh chiefdoms of Moyamba district, any location where the Ebola disease is identified will be quarantined, and residents in those chiefdoms must not travel to any other chiefdom until further notice;
(iii) the Ministry of Health and Sanitation will work with the ministries of local government and rural development, education, science and technology, and youth affairs to activate the involvement of paramount chiefs, local government authorities, teachers and youth groups within the affected districts in contact tracing and community surveillance activities;
(iv) the National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) will ensure that all district level EOCs are reconstituted and made fully operational with district coordinators appointed to coordinate their activities;
(v) the Ministry of Health and Sanitation will increase the capacity of temporary holding centres and beef up burial teams in the affected areas;
(vi) international donor partners and NGOs will work quickly with government to set up treatment centres in the areas already agreed upon in the country;
(vii) within the Makpele chiefdom in the Pujehun district; Tane and Gbonkolenken chiefdoms in the Tonkolili district; and Mambolo chiefdom in the Kambia district, which have also been identified as hot spots, homes will be quarantined when infected or suspected cases are identified. This same measure will be applied at Consider Lane, Up Krase Yard Kissy, Upper Maxwell Street, George Brook and Hillcut areas in the Western Urban District; Monkey Bush, Devil Hole, and Old Road Lumpa in the Western Rural District which are also hot spots.
STATE HOUSE
FREETOWN
24TH SEPTEMBER, 2014