Chart Of The Day: Ebola In West Africa Edition
While politicians in the United States worry about a grand total of one active Ebola cases in the United States, this chart from German Lopez at Vox shows that the disease continues on the march in western Africa:
There are some indications that, at the very least, the worst case scenarios that W.H.O. and other groups have been talking about don’t seem to be coming about, at least not yet, but as long as those numbers keep going up, the odds of such a scenario, and of the disease spreading beyond Libera, Sierra Leone, and Guinea in something other than very small numbers keep increasing. That’s where the battle needs to be focused, not against a nurse from Maine and a doctor from New York City.
Thank you for publishing this chart showing what is happening differently these days once Ebola gets established: Its spread is explosive (after years of being more or less under control, which implies something important has changed). I can see how this evidence supports an aggressive response in Africa. But I fail to see how this evidence supports a go lightly approach in the US, but I guess (I will save your commentators from the need to exercise their high intellect) I am just dumb and biased.
One underreported story is Ebola in Nigeria. They had over 100 Ebola deaths and yet they are now Ebola free. While we have panic attacks, the third world country Nigeria just did what they had to do.
Just heard on NPR that Ebola cases are going down now, to the extent they have empty beds at Ebola centers. Not making much of that info, just passing it along.
Some possibly good news from Liberia
@Let’s Be Free:
Are you seeing an explosive spread of Ebola in the US?
@Let’s Be Free:
The only change is the explosion in urban areas – and in West Africa which had NEVER seen Ebola before.
Had Liberia and Sierre Leone not utterly botched their public health response, this would not be an issue.
They did, it got to urban slums, and voila.
Americans pissing their pants about Ebola is utterly absurd.
@Scott: No Nigeria did NOT have over 100 Ebola deaths.
They had 8 death, 20 odd actual cases and several hundred exposures. All the deaths occured in the initial exposure incidents, the survival rate for the 2nd round exposure was, as memory serves 100%. That is even in Nigerian circumstances, with proper care, Ebola was quite survivable when care begins more or less immediately after symptoms kick in.
However, yes there was not the utterly absurd panic that one is seeing in the US.