The government of Sierra Leone launched a three-day nationwide lockdown that started on Friday in an effort to contain the spread of the Ebola virus.
President Ernest Bai Koroma urged the citizens to support the campaign. "Some of the things we are asking you to do are difficult, but life is better than these difficulties," said President Koroma explained on the radio, quoted by the New York Times.
During the lockdown, health officers wearing biohazard suits will go from house to house to disseminate relevant information about Ebola. At least 30,000 health workers, volunteers and teachers are set to visit each household in Senegal to educate them about the disease, identify possible patients and bring them to facilities that will take care of them.
Radio stations are regularly playing jingles singing about Ebola and telling residents not to go outdoors, Reuters reported.
In Freetown, volunteer groups began distributing flyers, stickers, and soap. Police vehicles and ambulances were also seen roaming.
To date, more than 5,357 West Africans were infected and more than 2,630 have died of Ebola. Hard-hit areas include Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, with at least 562 cases of Ebola reported in Sierra Leone.
Some were cynical whether the lockdown will be an effective measure against the spread of the disease. Sierra Leone newspaper Awareness Times described the lockdown preparations as "chaotic." On the other hand, Medecins Sans Frontieres, a medical charity group operating in Sierra Leone feared that the lockdown would lead to cover-up of affected individuals which may hasten the spread of the disease, according to Reuters.
The New York Times added that it seemed that the residents were not that cooperative of the campaign. Student volunteers complained that some residents would not want to open their doors while those who responded to their knocks wouldn't want to speak to them if they showed no supplies like soap or chlorine.
