08/11/2015
Sierra Leone High Commission, London
PRESS RELEASE
END OF EBOLA VIRUS DISEASE OUTBREAK IN SIERRA LEONE
London 7th November 2015 - Following a countdown of 42 consecutive days without recording a new case of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), Sierra Leone has today 7th November 2015 been declared
The Sierra Leone High Commission, with humility, extends the gratitude of the Government of the Republic of Sierra Leone to all its international partners, well-wishers and friends for the resources material, financial and human deployed in support of the fight against the Ebola Virus Disease and its eventual defeat.
We acknowledge among others, the role played by the Government and People of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland whose deployment of personnel and timely construction of treatment facilities across the country, exponentially increased capacity to separate suspected and confirmed cases from their communities and treat them in a safe and controlled manner. We appreciate also the patriotism of the Sierra Leone Community in the United Kingdom who mobilised resources and facilitated the shipment of consignments of vital medical and relief materials back home to Sierra Leone.
Today, as we celebrate the end of the Ebola transmission in Sierra Leone, we reflect with profound sadness and keep in remembrance, the thousands of lives (3,589) lost to the Ebola Virus Disease. Among this number were 221 healthcare workers who, with extraordinary courage and selfless dedication, risked their lives in the service of others. As a result of their heroic efforts, 4,051 confirmed cases survived the disease. We thank them for their sacrifice and courage without which the scourge could not have been contained.
The High Commission commends the resilience of the People of Sierra Leone in withstanding the epidemic and joins the nation in extending gratitude to His Excellency President Ernest Bai Koroma, for successfully leading the massive social mobilization campaign to create awareness and break the chains of transmission of the EVD. Similarly, significant proactive steps were taken by the Government in containing the outbreak, including swift isolation, safe and dignified burials, ban on traditional and some religious practices, quarantine and continued vigilance.
As the nation now embarks on post-Ebola recovery, the Government and People of Sierra Leone remain on full alert and with preparedness to rapidly respond to any emergent threat to the national health infrastructure and disaster response mechanism.
