Liberia got hit by the ebola
virus on a higher scale reaching crisis proportion in early July this year.
Prior to that, the virus began
killing people by the tens in early February. Sooner not later, it threatened
National Security. And the Liberian government was forced to act.
If the current measures that are
being undertaken by the Liberia government were introduced early as soon as the
virus hit and those measures were implemented in early February, the deadly
virus would never have taken a toll on innocent lives in the country. But they
say, “Better late than never!” Even though the measures are late, but the
Government is trying to do its best.
According to reports that we received
from the dailies in Liberia, of all the 15 counties that make up Liberia,
closed to three of them are considered epic centers when the virus is hitting
hard. And that includes Montserrado County, especially the city of Monrovia,
which is the capital of the country.
Maryland is counted as one of the
counties without a case of ebola. That means Maryland, like the rest of the
no-hit other counties, is considered ebola-free. But something happened quite
recently that almost thwarted such status.
Here is what happened and how
it happened:
Rumor said a young lady,
around age 30/40, with her two kids, was traveling to Grand Kru, which is her
hometown. According to the rumor, she was travelling by way of motor car. And interestingly,
the road to Grand Kru runs through Pleebo, the commercial capital of Maryland. So
whatever the case may have been, she was bound to go through Pleebo in
Maryland.
For those who do not know, Pleebo sits at a
strategic crossroad in the Southeast of the country. Pleebo conjoins Maryland
to Grand Kru; Maryland to Monrovia and then Liberia to the Ivory Coast. Everyone
who travels to any of these mentioned areas must go through Pleebo to get to
their destination.
Indications were, during the
early day of the rumor, that this particular lady that is suspected of the
ebola virus and heard to be traveling to Grand Kru was going through Maryland.
And that she would spend a night in Pleebo City before leaving for Grand Kru.
Actually, such a rumor,
considering how much damage ebola is doing to human life in Liberia, captured
the attention of Marylanders and their Local leaders.
From what was being fed to
people in Maryland, the lady had already departed Monrovia on board a
commercial vehicle heading to Maryland.
Suddenly, the rumor twisted.
It said that the lady who was suspected of the virus had already arrived in
Pleebo and slept there already. And so, why the Local government was looking
for the lady on the road, the rumor said she was already in Pleebo.
It was this part of the rumor
that moved and touched every Marylander and the Local authority. Thus, they
were forced into serious action.
Here is the confounding and
troubling theory:
If truly the lady’s husband
died of the ebola virus; and that she was with him up to burial time, including
her two little kids that are travelling with her; that she is truly suspected
of carrying the virus; and that she really slept in Pleebo with a friend or
relative, then chances are wide that she may have passed on the virus to some innocent
people or persons living in the home in which she slept in Pleebo.
If all of the above is true,
then indeed, Maryland was in serious trouble!
Local authorities and
Marylander got nervous. Everyone began to take cover. They launched an in-depth
search for the mysterious lady.
Quickly, the local authorities
took charge of the search. Everyone wanted to know if this lady spent the night
in Pleebo and where did she possibly spent the night. Local authorities wanted to
nip this situation in the bud. The search continued unabated. But all the same,
the effort was up to no avail.
Why?
Because, the lady had not yet reached
Maryland. Soon, the Authorities found that out. The next news was, the lady was
still en route to Maryland.
The rumor mill carried that the
unnamed lady with this suspected virus was living with her husband in Monrovia.
The rumor said the husband of the lady died of ebola virus. And that the lady
was deeply involved in the burial of her husband. Immediately after the burial,
the rumor concludes, the lady took off from Monrovia with her two kids heading for
Grand Kru County by way of Maryland.
Maryland local authorities got
the news or rumor, so to say, from an anonymous caller in Monrovia. The troubling
thing about the call is, it came early last week. And when the news came, the Authorities
began searching..
Then suddenly it all happened
- the County local authorities got the matter straight and released the facts
and details on Monday, August 18, 2014.
The acting superintendent of
Maryland County is Hon. Nathaniel Toe. Hon. Toe is also assistant
superintendent for Development. He is he who released this current and correct
information.
I spoke with Hon. Toe via cell
phone Monday morning, August 18, 2014. And this is what he told me.
He said the previous rumor about
the suspected virus infected lady’s pending travel to Maryland and everything
centered on the travel were indeed partially true. But not in its entirety.
Hon. Toe said it has been
established that a lady suspected of having the ebola virus was truly on her
way to Grand Kru. And that she was passing through Maryland in a commercial
vehicle. But the good thing is, she had not yet arrived in Maryland as
previously stated in the initial rumor. Security information provided him, established
at the lady was expected in Maryland on Sunday, August 17, 2014.
True in deed, the lady got to
Maryland on Sunday, August 17.
The Acting Superintendent and
his team of local authorities took position in Karlokeh, Karluway District –
one hour drive from Downtown Harper – awaiting the arrival of the vehicle.
Via cell phone, Hon. Toe informed
me that he and his team were in Karlokeh when the vehicle with the woman
finally arrived. Immediately, they stopped the vehicle. They then demanded the vehicle
with the lady turn around and head back to its previous origin. The operator
argue but up to avail. Hon. Toe and his staff were serious. They told the
vehicle would not enter Maryland from that point where they stood.
Hon. Toe said, there were pleas
from Grand Kru authorities to let the lady through. But Maryland local
authorities stood their ground. They refused to let her through.
From all indications, someone
called the current Minister of Internal Affairs, Hon. Morris Dukuly on the
matter while things were in motion. When the Minister heard the case and delve
into it while in Monrovia, he expressed his unconditional support for the
Maryland County authorities’ stance. Thus, he ordered the vehicle to return back
to Monrovia.
Without further delay, the
vehicle with the lady and other passengers turned around and left the grounds
of Maryland with ease.
From that point, Maryland regained
its place as being ebola-free.
Thank God for the early
warning. And thanks to the vibrant Local authorities. They did the right thing.
Maryland is safe for now! We
can now inhale and exhale. But we need to embark upon stringent preventive
measures and a robust awareness campaign to save our people and county from the
tentacles of ebola.
I tip my hat to the Maryland
County local authorities for a proactive move to prevent ebola in Maryland.
God bless us all and save us against
ebola and all its evils!
I am T. Gbuo-Mle Bedell, social justice advocate, speaking and working
on the ground in Liberia and a victim of police brutality.
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