Ebola: Sierra Leone cancels Christmas

Public Christmas celebrations for this year have been banned in Sierra Leone due to the Ebola infections which have continued to spread.

According to the government’s Ebola response unit, soldiers are to be deployed throughout the festive period to send people venturing onto the streets back indoors.

Palo Conteh, head of the department, said:

 “No Christmas and New Year celebrations this year”.

“We will ensure that everybody remains at home to reflect on Ebola,”

“Military personnel will be on the streets at Christmas and the New Year to stop any street celebrations,” 

The current emergency regulations in the country already have bars and nightspots shut down while public gatherings are outlawed but there is no general ban on going outdoors or working.

Although Islam is the dominant religion in Sierra Leone, more than a quarter of the population is Christian and public gatherings and entertainment are common during the holiday period.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday there were 17,942 cases of the tropical fever across eight countries as of December 7, resulting in 6,388 deaths — almost all in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.