Meanwhile in Africa...

[Russell]

Sierra Leone people under house arrest for 4 days

People in west African nation barred from leaving their homes on 18-21 September to 'deal with Ebola once and for all'

Sierra Leone will impose a four-day nationwide "lockdown" this month in a bid to contain the spread of the biggest ever outbreak of Ebola.

From 18 to 21 September people across the west African nation will not be allowed to leave their homes, a senior official in the president's office said on Friday.

The move is intended to allow health workers to identify and isolate new cases to prevent the disease from spreading further, said Ibrahim Ben Kargbo, a presidential adviser on the country's Ebola task force.

"The aggressive approach is necessary to deal with the spread of Ebola once and for all," he said.

So far, more than 3,000 people have been infected in west Africa, with almost 2,100 deaths from the virus recorded in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria since March, according to UN figures. As of Friday, Sierra Leone has recorded 491 deaths. Last week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned that there could be another 20,000 cases before the Ebola outbreak is stopped.

The WHO announced on Friday that health workers could be given vaccines from November, when safety tests are completed.

More than 20 infected health workers have died in Sierra Leone since the start of the outbreak in March.

Kargbo said 21,000 people would be recruited to enforce the lockdown. Thousands of police officers and soldiers have already been deployed to enforce the quarantining of towns in Sierra Leone's worst-hit regions, near the border with Guinea.

More

Sounds like a brilliant plan...

[Russell]

Same link as above, but the Guardian edited their article to reflect the opinion that a 4-day lockdown is not a brilliant plan after all...

Sierra Leone's planned Ebola lockdown could spread disease further

Plan to bar people from leaving their homes on 18-21 September could drive infected people underground, say aid agencies

A four-day nationwide lockdown announced by the Sierra Leone government in a bid to contain the biggest ever outbreak of Ebola could instead exacerbate the spread of the disease, aid agencies have warned.

From 18 to 21 September people across the west African nation will not be allowed to leave their homes, a senior official in the president's office said on Friday.

But Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) raised concern about the drastic step, warning that it could lead people to try to conceal infections from the authorities.

A spokeswoman said: "It has been our experience that lockdowns and quarantines do not help control Ebola as they end up driving people underground and jeopardising the trust between people and health providers. This leads to the concealment of potential cases and ends up spreading the disease further."

More

Looks like the Sierra Leone government does everything in its power to reduce its population...

[Russell]

Ebola Spreading 'Exponentially' as Patients get on Taxis to Seek Beds in Liberia

The Ebola virus is spreading exponentially across Liberia as patients fill taxis in a fruitless search for medical care, the World Health Organization said Monday.

[...]

WHO and other groups have been warning that the situation in Liberia and Sierra Leone and Guinea is dire. It’s especially bad in Liberia, WHO said Monday.

“Transmission of the Ebola virus in Liberia is already intense and the number of new cases is increasing exponentially,” WHO said in a statement.

[...]

“In Monrovia, taxis filled with entire families, of whom some members are thought to be infected with the Ebola virus, crisscross the city, searching for a treatment bed. There are none. As WHO staff in Liberia confirm, no free beds for Ebola treatment exist anywhere in the country.”

[...]

“According to a WHO staff member who has been in Liberia for the past several weeks, motorbike-taxis and regular taxis are a hot source of potential Ebola virus transmission, as these vehicles are not disinfected at all, much less before new passengers are taken on board,” WHO said.

“When patients are turned away at Ebola treatment centers, they have no choice but to return to their communities and homes, where they inevitably infect others, perpetuating constantly higher flare-ups in the number of cases.”

The need for beds, supplies and staff have “completely outstripped” capacity, both of the Liberia government and of outside groups such as Who and Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) to help.

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What's next?!?

Prohibiting taxis?

[Taro Toporific]

What We’re Afraid to Say About Ebola (Airborn Ebola!)
Sept. 11, 2014
...possibility is one that virologists are loath to discuss openly but are definitely considering in private: that The second possibility is one that virologists are loath to discuss openly but are definitely considering in private: that an Ebola virus could mutate to become transmissible through the air. You can now get Ebola only through direct contact with bodily fluids. But viruses like Ebola are notoriously sloppy in replicating, meaning the virus entering one person may be genetically different from the virus entering the next. The current Ebola virus’s hyper-evolution is unprecedented; there has been more human-to-human transmission in the past four months than most likely occurred in the last 500 to 1,000 years. Each new infection represents trillions of throws of the genetic dice.
If certain mutations occurred, it would mean that just breathing would put one at risk of contracting Ebola. Infections could spread quickly to every part of the globe, as the H1N1 influenza virus did in 2009, after its birth in Mexico.
Why are public officials afraid to discuss this? They don’t want to be accused of screaming “Fire!” in a crowded theater — as I’m sure some will accuse me of doing. But the risk is real, and until we consider it, the world will not be prepared to do what is necessary to end the epidemic.an Ebola virus could mutate to become transmissible through the air. You can now get Ebola only through direct contact with bodily fluids. But viruses like Ebola are notoriously sloppy in replicating, meaning the virus entering one person may be genetically different from the virus entering the next. The current Ebola virus’s hyper-evolution is unprecedented; there has been more human-to-human transmission in the past four months than most likely occurred in the last 500 to 1,000 years. Each new infection represents trillions of throws of the genetic dice.
If certain mutations occurred, it would mean that just breathing would put one at risk of contracting Ebola. Infections could spread quickly to every part of the globe, as the H1N1 influenza virus did in 2009, after its birth in Mexico.More..

[Russell]

It is here that the Internet shows itself to be a great invention!

In principle, you could lead your life isolated from any physical human life form...

[Russell]

Ebola isn’t a zombie virus

Everybody, calm down. Ebola isn't a "zombie virus." It will not turn you into a member of the living dead.

That's the message delivered by Chinese state media, in response to the flurry of rumors, online and presumably elsewhere, about the deadly virus that's ravaging West Africa.

A recent article published by the state-run Xinhua News Agency debunks various assertions about the virus.

According to a translation from Foreign Policy, some people erroneously believe that once people die from Ebola, they can "unexpectedly reawaken, entering into an extremely violent condition in which they bite any moving object, including humans and animals."

[...]

As for a zombie outbreak, the United States appears to be well-prepared for the walking dead, thanks to the Zombie Preparedness Initiative from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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I'm sure Coligny already found that web page...

[Taro Toporific]

US State department orders an additional 160,000 Ebola suits---Coligny continues to hide in his sealed, biohazard level 4, concrete bunker.

Lakeland Industries Announces Global Availability of Hazmat Suits for Ebola
NKOMA, N.Y., Sept. 12, 2014 /PRNewswire/ ....
...Lakeland stands ready to join the fight against the spread of Ebola," said Christopher J. Ryan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Lakeland Industries. "We understand the difficulty of getting appropriate products through a procurement system that in times of crisis favors availability over specification, and we hope our added capacity will help alleviate that problem. With the U.S. State Department alone putting out a bid for 160,000 suits, we encourage all protective apparel companies to increase their manufacturing capacity for sealed seam garments so that our industry can do its part in addressing this threat to global health.More..

image.jpg

[Russell]

160,000 Ebola suits and now 3000 troops being sent.

Finally, some serious action.

Obama to send 3,000 troops to tackle Ebola

The United States announced on Tuesday that it would send 3,000 troops to help tackle the Ebola outbreak as part of a ramped-up response including a major deployment in Liberia, the country where the epidemic is spiraling fastest out of control.

The U.S. response to the crisis, to be formally unveiled later by President Barack Obama, includes plans to build 17 treatment centers, train thousands of healthcare workers and establish a military control center for coordination, U.S. officials told reporters.

The World Health Organization has said it needs foreign medical teams with 500-600 experts as well as at least 10,000 local health workers, numbers that may rise if the number of cases increases, as it is widely expected to.

So far Cuba and China have said they will send medical staff to Sierra Leone. Cuba will deploy 165 people in October while China is sending a mobile laboratory with 59 staff to speed up testing for the disease. It already has 115 staff and a Chinese-funded hospital there.

But Liberia is where the disease appears to be running amok. The WHO has not issued any estimate of cases or deaths in the country since Sept 5 and its Director-General Margaret Chan has said there is not a single bed available for Ebola patients there.

Liberia, a nation founded by descendants of freed American slaves, appealed for U.S. help last week.

A U.N. official in the country said on Friday that her colleagues had resorted to telling locals to use plastic bags to fend off the killer virus, for want of any other protective equipment.

Medecins Sans Frontieres, the charity that has been leading the fight against Ebola, said it was overwhelmed and repeated its call for an immediate and massive deployment.

"We are honestly at a loss as to how a single, private NGO is providing the bulk of isolation units and beds," MSF's international president Joanne Liu said in a speech to the United Nations in Geneva, adding that the charity was having to turn away sick people in Monrovia.

"Highly infectious people are forced to return home, only to infect others and continue the spread of this deadly virus. All for a lack of international response," she said.

More

In related news a new estimate is made of the number of deaths in a few months time: Ebola victims could total 1,000,000 within 12-18 weeks.

Looks like some people begin to understand the seriousness of the situation...

[Wage Slave]

And since Liberia was an American creation in the first place it's not before time - that's for sure.

[yanpa]

Why are they sending troops? To shoot the virus?

[wagyl]

I'm assuming it is a "front line construction unit" or logistics type operation, to support the medical side of things.

It will be seen in a different light the moment one of their guys brings home a microbial souvenir.

[Russell]

Why are they sending troops? To shoot the virus?

Call it a Merican reflex...

But seriously, I suspect that the US army has a medicine against Ebola.

The reason for my suspicion is that the third American was successfully treated by some unmentioned medicine, and in a similar news report the US army were somehow mentioned. I don't remember where I read it, only that I read it.

[yanpa]

Japanese researchers develop 30-minute Ebola test

TOKYO -- Researchers at Japan's Nagasaki University, in collaboration with Eiken Chemical, have developed a way to detect the presence of the Ebola virus in humans in just 30 minutes. Professor Jiro Yasuda of the university said the new method is simpler than the current one in common use and can be done in places where expensive dedicated testing equipment is unavailable.

...more...

[Taro Toporific]

finally an explanation about the frenchman's disappearance....

Man Bitten by Ebola Patient Flown to Switzerland

[Yokohammer]

Uh-oh ...

First Ebola Case Confirmed in Dallas; DFR Crew Quarantined

[Taro Toporific]

Another reason to nuke Texas from space...

Uh-oh ...
First Ebola Case Confirmed in Dallas; DFR Crew Quarantined

[Russell]

Sanitizing crew turned away at Ebola patient's residence in Dallas

Four days after a Liberian man was diagnosed with Ebola in Dallas, the apartment where he stayed has not been sanitized, a cleaning crew contracted to do the job said. Four other people are still living there.

[...]

As concerns grow over how many people he may have exposed to the deadly virus, a plan to sanitize the apartment was delayed late Thursday.

Brad Smith of the Cleaning Guys, which was hired to sanitize the apartment, said his company does not have the proper permits to transport hazardous waste on Texas highways. The company specializes in hazmat and biohazard cleaning services.

Smith said authorities sent his crew away late Thursday before they entered the apartment and told them to come back with proper permits. It's unclear how long that will take.

"The permit is being processed through DOT (the Department of Transportation) because it is a special permit," Smith said.

"This is a unique situation. Once awarded, our hazmat teams will be allowed back inside to do their jobs."

Duncan was visiting his son and his son's mother in Dallas, said Wilfred Smallwood, his half-brother.

The woman, who asked to be identified only by her first name, Louise, told CNN's Anderson Cooper she is quarantined with one of her children under age 13 and two nephews in their 20s.

Louise used bleach to clean her apartment, "but it's not clear to me how systematic the cleaning was," Cooper said.

They've been holed up in the apartment since Duncan became ill.

[...]

Health officials are reaching out to as many as 100 people who may have had contact with Duncan, a Texas Department of State Health Services spokeswoman said. They are being questioned because they may have crossed paths with the patient either.

More

Uh-oh ...

[Takechanpoo]

made-in-japan medicine to cure ebola

The nurse, who has not been identified, "is now cured and has left hospital," Marisol Touraine said in a statement.

The first French national to be infected with the virus was airlifted back to France on September 19 and received experimental treatment at a military hospital on the outskirts of Paris.

Touraine authorised the use in France of three experimental drugs for the treatment of Ebola including the antiviral medicine Avigan, or favipiravir, produced by Japanese firm Toyama Chemical, a subsidiary of FujiFilm Holdings.

http://www.thelocal.fr/20141005/french- ... in-liberia

i already bought Toyama Chemical's stocks, needless to say.

[Russell]

Looks like Ebola has been underestimated in the US.

In the mean time, it looks like Nigeria did the right thing.

[Samurai_Jerk]

Looks like Ebola has been underestimated in the US.

Not the US. Texas.

[Taro Toporific]

Screen Shot 2014-10-16 at 11.17.24 AM.png

via

[Russell]

No biohazard facilities in Japan can handle Ebola

Despite assurances by the Japanese government that it stands ready to tackle an Ebola outbreak, a lack of facilities to handle the virus suggests such assertions may be overly optimistic.

As of last Sunday, the hemorrhagic virus had killed more than 4,400 people worldwide, and nearly 9,000 were known to be infected, mostly in West Africa, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

With fears growing of an international pandemic, Japan is taking administrative steps to strengthen its response. The government has introduced a bill in the Diet that would give local governments greater power to require patients with infectious diseases to submit samples for Ebola testing.

Forty-seven hospitals and medical facilities nationwide, including facilities near Narita and Kansai airports, are “designated” as infectious disease treatment centers, so Ebola patients would likely be sent there. But Japan does not have any facilities with the required biosafety level to handle the deadly disease, according to CDC guidelines.

Ebola should only be handled in biosafety Level 4 facilities, where protective positive pressure suits must be worn and the rooms are constructed in a way that ensures the virus cannot escape. But there are fewer than 30 Level 4 facilities worldwide, and none in Japan.

In March, the Science Council of Japan called on the government to build Level 4 facilities and to fund the training of personnel who can handle equivalent-level viruses and toxic agents.

In fact, Japan in the 1980s built two facilities with Level 4 operating potential — one in a branch office of the National Center of Infectious Diseases in the western Tokyo city of Higashimurayama, near Tokorozawa, and the other at a facility in the Riken institute in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture. But, poorly equipped by today’s standards, they remain unable to operate as Level 4 labs because of strong opposition from worried residents.

The council made four recommendations. First, it urged the government to build Level 4 facilities to isolate and examine infectious diseases.

Second, it said Japan should build new facilities to research and develop vaccines, conduct testing on animals and develop antidotes.

It also recommended distributing such facilities around the country to reduce the risk of everything being lost in a natural disaster.

Finally, the council emphasized the importance of public relations and of protecting residents.

More

I presume Japan has some uninhabited islands where they can build those facilities...

[Takechanpoo]

An experimental drug currently being trialled for influenza and Ebola viruses could have a new target: norovirus

http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/scie ... tomach-bug
am thinking if buy more toyama chemicals stocks

[kurogane]

　　　
I presume Japan has some uninhabited islands where they can build those facilities...

You........you goat hater！！！！！！！！！！！！！

Couldn't they just transfer the necessary hazmat materiel from the area around Fukushima Daichi in a sort of 0 birds, 1 stone strategy??

[Takechanpoo]

ching chong chinese JK-05 is a copy of T-705 aka Favipiravir. they insist independently developed it though.

専門家会議後に開かれた会見で、ある記者は、「中国で開発されたJK-05という新薬は臨床試験も完了しているようだが、これについてWHOは議論をしたのか」と質問した。JK-05とは、9月1日付の中国紙『人民網』が、中国軍事医学科学院の微生物流行病研究所が5年かけて開発し、中国人民解放軍の審査に合格し軍隊特需薬品として認められたと報じているものだ。

この質問に対し、WHOのキーニー事務局長補は、「その薬剤は日本のT-705、ファビピラビルと同じ分子である。ファビピラビルについては議論を重ねた」と答えた。その上で、「ファビピラビルは確かに有望な新薬だ。ただし、培養されたエボラ出血熱ウイルスにおける有効性が、試験管内で示されただけである。投与の優先度を考えうるに足りるデータがそろい次第すぐに検討する」とも話した。

http://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/47687
go to fucking hell, natural born scammers aka ching chong chang fellows

[matsuki]

go to fucking hell, natural bornculture of scammers aka ching chong chang fellows

FTFY Take...they're not born that way, it's Chinese "culture"

[Cyka UchuuJin]

Funny-memes-quiz-do-you-have-ebola.jpg

[Russell]

At least they could have asked whether you have eaten or prepared bush meat in the last three weeks...

[yanpa]

The difference between US vs UK Ebola news coverage - Russell Howard's Good News

[matsuki]