Saturday May 9, 2015

      Liberia is Ebola-free!! Having gone 42 days since the last case, today WHO declared the country Ebola-free, and this is worth celebrating, which is what we have done. But let me back up...
      We left NY on Thursday night for the 7 hour flight to Brussels; Brussels Airlines was kind enough to not only give us an excess baggage waiver so that we could each bring several duffel bags of supplies, but they also offered us an upgrade to Business Class for a reasonable price. Santiago and I hesitated briefly in considering the offer, and then decided we should take it ! Being able to lie flat for the overnight flight was quite pleasant; although I didn't sleep as well as I might have liked, it was definitely more relaxing than sitting upright.
      We had a 5 hour layover in Brussels, and while waiting we met up with Masmina Sirleaf and Adamah; until I actually put eyes on him, I wasn't sure if he was coming to Liberia at this time or not ! Anyway, we had the 7 hr flight to Monrovia where we were picked up and brought to the apartment. We are staying in the same apartments in Congo Town that we have occasionally stayed in before; they are nicely furnished and comfortable. Soon after we arrived Munah Tarpeh, the assistant Administrator at JFK, brought us dinner and we had a good conversation about what they have been through in the past year, the current situation, and what they anticipate for the future. Ebola has affected life here in many different ways, and I think probably in some ways that have yet to be seen. One interesting example: the emphasis on hand washing to prevent the spread of Ebola had the beneficial effect of significantly decreasing the infection rate from all causes in the Neonatal ICU. Hand washing is important, and now it has become a normal habit here where it wasn't pre-Ebola.
     After a good nights sleep, we had breakfast and then were told that Adamah was sending someone to bring us to the President's house. En route there, it was decided that we would change plans and go to ELWA Hospital where we would meet up with the Presidential bus taking a celebration tour ! ELWA Hospital is a missionary hospital which has been in Liberia for many years; it was also the site of several Ebola Treatment Units(ETU), and was the place where Dr. Kent Brantley worked prior to his infection with Ebola and subsequent airlift to Atlanta for successful treatment. Madame President had decided to celebrate this day by visiting a number of facilities to thank the workers for their help in making this day possible; she took a bus to be able to include the many people in her government who had waged the battle against Ebola as well as other important supporters such as the American Ambassador, people from USAID, WHO, and also stragglers such as myself and Santiago !  In addition to ELWA, we went to Catholic Hospital, Redemption Hospital, the Ministry of Health ETU, a couple of clinics, a small settlement called Banjour that was devastated by Ebola, and of course we also stopped at JFK. It was such a thrill to get off the bus and see many of my friends at JFK, and to be able to celebrate this wonderful day with them. I look forward to going there on Monday to spend more time with them !
      Banjour was a very interesting and sad place to visit. It is a primarily Muslim community, and as I said it was particularly hard hit by the virus. As we drove down the dirt road into the community, I noticed that each house had various letters and codes spray painted on the front. Similar to the houses I saw in New Orleans after Katrina, these were codes to indicate whether searchers had found corpses within, or infectious persons needing quarantine, or whatever.
      After returning from the bus trip, Santiago, Adamah, and I had lunch with The President and one of her staff. We listened to them tell of their experience during the past year: the pain of hearing each evening the count of bodies found that day; the sense of isolation when it seemed like no airline was going to continue to fly into Monrovia because of fear ( Brussels Airlines kept flying, in part because Madame President called the President of Senegal to beg him to allow continued refueling stops in Dakar for planes going in or out of Liberia); the horror of seeing the people of Liberia being decimated by this unknown enemy, and feeling like the virus was unstoppable. There must have been times when she felt totally defeated, and yet she pressed on, because that is the kind of woman she is. Her strength, tenacity, and leadership were crucial elements in getting Liberia to this goal. Having the opportunity to have a conversation with her about the battle against Ebola during the past year was inspiring and unforgettable.
       Tonight we went for dinner at the Mamba Point Hotel with Lydia, and 2 young Americans Jessie and Janessa who work with Lydia at one of the orphanages we visited today. We were joined by Ben, who is now doing consulting work in Lisbon, and Eric, who is Jessie's boyfriend as well as commandant of the Marine squad at the U.S. Embassy. After a delicious dinner we want across the street to Lila Brown's for a nightcap, and then headed home.
       Talking to Lydia about Banjour, I learned some facts about the tight-Muslim community there: pre-Ebola, there were 5 husbands ( 3 died of Ebola ); 13 wives between the 5 husbands, of whom 10 died of Ebola; and 56 children ! So when we went there today, and there were many rows of children, I assumed we were dealing with a school...but in fact it was one "family" quite
-amazingly one family.