Ebola outbreak: Health team 'found dead' in Guinea

[LarryW]

Then, there’s this …

(And the only weapons our troops will have are smart phones for taking selfies...??)

Ebola outbreak: Health team 'found dead' in Guinea

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-29256443

Officials in Guinea searching for a team of health workers and journalists who went missing while trying to raise awareness of Ebola have found several bodies.

A spokesman for Guinea's government said the bodies included those of three journalists in the team.

They went missing after being attacked on Tuesday in a village near the southern city of Nzerekore.

More than 2,600 people have now died from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

It is the world's worst outbreak of the deadly disease, with officials warning that more than 20,000 people could ultimately be infected.

The three doctors and three journalists disappeared after being pelted with stones by residents when they arrived in the village of Wome - near where the Ebola outbreak was first recorded.

One of the journalists managed to escape and told reporters that she could hear the villagers looking for them while she was hiding.

A government delegation, led by the health minister, had been dispatched to the region but they were unable to reach the village by road because a main bridge had been blocked.
'Killed in cold blood'

On Thursday night, government spokesman Albert Damantang Camara said eight bodies had been found, including those of three journalists.

He said they had been recovered from the septic tank of a primary school in the village, adding that the victims had been "killed in cold blood by the villagers".

The reason for the killings is unclear, but correspondents say many people in the region distrust health officials and have refused to co-operate with authorities, fearing that a diagnosis means certain death.

Last month, riots erupted in the area of Guinea where the health team went missing after rumours that medics who were disinfecting a market were contaminating people.

Speaking on Thursday, President Francois Hollande said France was setting up a military hospital in Guinea as part of his country's efforts to support the West African nations affected by the outbreak.

He said the hospital was a sign that France's contribution was not just financial, adding that it would be in "the forests of Guinea, in the heart of the outbreak".

The World Health Organisation said on Thursday that more than 700 new cases of Ebola have emerged in West Africa in just a week, showing that the outbreak was accelerating.

It said there had been more than 5,300 cases in total and that half of those were recorded in the past three weeks.

The epidemic has struck Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Nigeria and Senegal.

A three-day lockdown is starting in Sierra Leone at 00:00 GMT in a bid to stop the disease spreading.

[Flagg]

Wow...."Nuke it from orbit....it's the only way to be sure."

The risks of trying to help out in the developing world.

3 Doctors tells me they were potentially diagnosing/triaging rather than trying to win the public health education war they are also waging against disinformation, cultural witchcraft, and chaos/fear.

Murdered bodies hidden in a septic tank sounds quite unpleasant.

I wonder if the combined international response has put together any decent area studies to make sure they aren't pulling the pins on any cultural hand grenades?

I wonder if local traditional healers are being brought into the equation?

[MR2]

I'm thinking that a septic tank is exactly where so-called journalists belong...

[Flagg]

Originally Posted by MR2

I'm thinking that a septic tank is exactly where so-called journalists belong...

Upon reflection, and with my anecdotal experience working with them in a professional capacity....I'd partially agree.

However, there were 3 doctors there too.

Even knowing that when you place your bets you take your chances, it's a shame to see some folks dying to help.

[sinjefe]

"The reason for the killings is unclear, but correspondents say many people in the region distrust health officials and have refused to co-operate with authorities, fearing that a diagnosis means certain death."

So, if a diagnosis means certain death, their solution is to not be diagnosed (and then they'll live)? They probably think their souls are captured in photographs, too.

Ebola is just culling the herd. Let it go.

[Red Flag 1]

It seems a local cure for Ebola is murder, also serves as a sure fire preventative too. That said, why go there? This may put Ebola into overdrive, with no health care providers shipping in. It really is hard to wrap my head around this; what a horrid development.

[Trapper John]

Larry W: They went missing after being attacked on Tuesday in a village near the southern city of Nzerekore.....


The three doctors and three journalists disappeared after being pelted with stones by residents when they arrived in the village of Wome - near where the Ebola outbreak was first recorded.

One of the journalists managed to escape and told reporters that she could hear the villagers looking for them while she was hiding.

This is exactly what a recent member of the "country team" predicted in a discussion we had a few weeks ago. The population there believes we concocted EBOLA and HIV to eradicate their population! The 3000 troops we are sending may have a riot on their hands at some point. Ill conceived idea IMO.

There is a lot more prep work that needs to be done before we go barreling in to save the day.

There is, however, a group of folks that do this sort of thing in a quiet and professional manner.

[PedOncoDoc]

Originally Posted by Trapper John

This is exactly what a recent member of the "country team" predicted in a discussion we had a few weeks ago. The population there believes we concocted EBOLA and HIV to eradicate their population! The 3000 troops we are sending may have a riot on their hands at some point. Ill conceived idea IMO.

There is a lot more prep work that needs to be done before we go barreling in to save the day.

There is, however, a group of folks that do this sort of thing in a quiet and professional manner.

I can't see any good direction forward. Containment is needed, but will likely only cause further mistrust/animosity, and I can only imagine how messy those ROEs would be...

[LarryW]

Originally Posted by Trapper John

This is exactly what a recent member of the "country team" predicted in a discussion we had a few weeks ago. The population there believes we concocted EBOLA and HIV to eradicate their population! The 3000 troops we are sending may have a riot on their hands at some point. Ill conceived idea IMO.

There is a lot more prep work that needs to be done before we go barreling in to save the day.

There is, however, a group of folks that do this sort of thing in a quiet and professional manner.

Won't take long for that riot once the assorted shitheads hear there are Americans in country building hospitals and schools for girls...

The shitheads will show up like ducks on a June bug.

[Flagg]

Originally Posted by Trapper John

This is exactly what a recent member of the "country team" predicted in a discussion we had a few weeks ago. The population there believes we concocted EBOLA and HIV to eradicate their population! The 3000 troops we are sending may have a riot on their hands at some point. Ill conceived idea IMO.

There is a lot more prep work that needs to be done before we go barreling in to save the day.

There is, however, a group of folks that do this sort of thing in a quiet and professional manner.

That Soviet era "CIA created AIDS" disinformation has certainly retained traction over the years.

It's like when a piece of old chewing gum gets to the consistency where it sticks like super glue to everything it touches.