Ebola death toll tops 5,000; steep rise in Sierra Leone cases

REUTERS                                                                                               Nov. 12, 2014

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA --The death toll from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa's three hardest-hit countries, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, has risen to 5,147 out of 14,068 cases at the end of Nov. 9, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.

A further 13 deaths and 30 cases have been recorded in five other countries - Nigeria, Senegal, Mali, Spain and the United States, the U.N. agency said.

"There is some evidence that case incidence is no longer increasing nationally in Guinea and Liberia, but steep increases persist in Sierra Leone," the WHO said in a statement. "Cases and deaths continue to be under-reported in this outbreak."

Some 421 new infections were reported in Sierra Leone in the week to Nov. 9, especially in the west and north, it said.

Ebola is still spreading intensely in Sierra Leone's capital of Freetown, with Koinadugu and Kambia northern regions now "emerging areas of concern", it added.

The virus is spreading rapidly in Macenta in Guinea's southwest near the Liberian border and to a lesser extent in Siguiri bordering Mali, it said, calling for a high level of vigilance due to the district's proximity to its neighbor.

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http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/12/us-health-ebola-who-idUSKCN0IW25L20141112
Link to WHO report
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/situation-reports/en/