-Health Authorities Confirm Following a False Alarm
MONROVIA – Liberia’s Ministry of Health, the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), and the John F. Kennedy Medical Center (JFKMC) have issued a firm denial of last week’s social media rumors claiming the presence of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the country.
In a statement released last week, the three institutions clarified that Liberia currently has no suspected, probable, or confirmed case of Ebola. The health authorities urged the public to remain calm and to refrain from spreading or giving credence to misleading information and unverified reports, which they described as being intended to create unnecessary panic and attract attention on social media.
The public was reminded that the official institutions responsible for reporting and communicating disease outbreaks in Liberia are the Ministry of Health and the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL). The Ministry of Health, together with NPHIL and its partners, continues to maintain surveillance and preparedness measures across the country. These efforts include monitoring at health facilities and border points, conducting public awareness activities, and coordinating with the World Health Organization (WHO), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Africa CDC, and regional health authorities.
Moreover, the public is encouraged to practice regular handwashing, to avoid direct contact with bodily fluids of sick individuals, and to promptly report suspected illnesses to health workers. Liberians should rely solely on official updates from the Ministry of Health and NPHIL regarding any disease outbreak.
The clarification followed a viral voice message—allegedly sent by a Liberian nurse—that swept across social media on Friday, triggering mass panic among Liberians. In the recording, the nurse, identified as Paola N. Bedell, claimed that Ebola patients had been transferred to a holding center in Monrovia.
According to the audio, travelers returning from a church conference in Uganda began displaying Ebola symptoms and were moved from the John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Sinkor to an isolation facility. The message urged Liberians to immediately resume handwashing, avoid physical contact, and put on personal protective equipment. However, Bedell was apprehended on Saturday by the Liberia National Police (LNP).
The World Health Organization(WHO) has declared the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). This declaration is driven by a surge in cases linked to the rare Bundibugyo virus strain, for which no approved vaccines or specific treatments exist. Currently, there are over 500 suspected cases across the region, with least 131 reported deaths.
Ebola disease is a severe, and often fatal viral illness that primarily affects humans and non-human primates. The 2014–2016 Ebola outbreak devastated Liberia, making it the hardest-hit country with nearly half of all deaths recorded during the epidemic. In total, Liberia documented 10,672 cases and 4,809 deaths, which represented roughly 40 percent of the fatalities across West Africa.
The crisis escalated with terrifying speed, as the capital city of Monrovia saw between 300 and 400 new cases every week during the peak months of August and September 2014. The overall fatality rate for infected Liberians was 53.3 percent, but for health workers who bravely treated patients, the rate was a staggering 81.8 percent.
Liberia’s initial response was paralyzed by a weak healthcare system that had never fully recovered from years of civil war. Many clinics lacked running water or electricity, which caused infections to skyrocket among medical staff. Widespread fear of the unknown Ebola Treatment Units led many sick people to avoid seeking care, and some communities believed the disease had no cure at all.
The tide turned only when international organizations shifted from coercive measures to community-based strategies. Organizations like Oxfam trained local Liberians to go door-to-door, where they dispelled dangerous rumors about bleach showers or body snatching. When a new case appeared in a remote village, specialized Rapid Isolation and Treatment teams, known as RITE teams, were deployed within hours to stop the chain of transmission. Safe burial teams replaced traditional washing rituals with dignified practices that proved crucial to halting the virus’s spread.
