Missouri woman finds grandson dead, shot by police
Missouri woman finds grandson dead, shot by police
A law enforcement spokesman says a large crowd has confronted officers, yelling such things as "kill the police" after a police officer fatally shot a male in a St. Louis-area neighborhood.More >>A woman whose grandson was fatally shot by police says she found his body in the middle of the street minutes after he was expected to arrive at her home.More >>US oversees its 3rd airdrop of supplies in Iraq
US oversees its 3rd airdrop of supplies in Iraq
The U.S. military has dropped food and water for a third time to thousands of Iraqi refugees stranded on Mount Sinjar.More >>The U.S. military has dropped food and water for a third time to thousands of Iraqi refugees stranded on Mount Sinjar.More >>Prime chance in Iowa for potential 2016 candidates
Prime chance in Iowa for potential 2016 candidates
More than 1,000 people are expected at a daylong religious conference in Iowa - several of them potential candidates for the Republican nomination for president.More >>The lineup of potential 2016 GOP presidential candidates courting Iowa conservatives Saturday agreed on two things: America is on the wrong track and they could move it in the right direction.More >>Washington teenager arrested in 6-year-old's death
Washington teenager arrested in 6-year-old's death
A 17-year-old was arrested Sunday in the death and sexual assault of a 6-year-old girl whose body was found near the Washington state mobile home park she vanished from last weekend, authorities said.More >>A 17-year-old was arrested Saturday in the death and sexual assault of a 6-year-old girl whose body was found near the Washington state mobile home park she vanished from last weekend, authorities said.More >>Tourists back to paradise as Hawaii area struggles
Tourists back to paradise as Hawaii area struggles
The one-two hurricane punch that was supposed to hit Hawaii is looking more like a jab and a missed left hook.More >>His generator whirring at top speed, Gene Lamkin used rain captured from Tropical Storm Iselle to wash his hair as he and thousands of others in a rural swath of the Big Island remained in the dark and unable to traverse...More >>
Obama authorizes renewed airstrikes in Iraq
Obama authorizes renewed airstrikes in Iraq
Obama authorizes Iraq airstrikes to protect Americans; US airdrops aid to besieged civiliansMore >>Obama authorizes Iraq airstrikes to protect Americans; US airdrops aid to besieged civiliansMore >>3 decades later, remains of Jonestown bodies found
3 decades later, remains of Jonestown bodies found
3 decades after shocking mass suicide-murder, remains of 9 Jonestown bodies found in DelawareMore >>3 decades after shocking mass suicide-murder, remains of 9 Jonestown bodies found in DelawareMore >>Iselle to give Hawaii first hurricane in 22 years
Iselle to give Hawaii first hurricane in 22 years
Iselle to give Hawaii first hurricane in 22 years with election pending and 2nd storm loomingMore >>Iselle to give Hawaii first hurricane in 22 years with election pending and 2nd storm loomingMore >>Missing girl's dad had previous molestation charge
Missing girl's dad had previous molestation charge
Father of missing 6-year-old Washington girl was charged with molestation in 2000More >>Father of missing 6-year-old Washington girl was charged with molestation in 2000More >>Obama, Bush 1st ladies press for girls' education
Obama, Bush 1st ladies press for girls' education
Michelle Obama, Laura Bush press for girls' education, share insights with African 1st spousesMore >>Michelle Obama, Laura Bush press for girls' education, share insights with African 1st spousesMore >>
Associated Press
MONROVA, Liberia (AP) - Riot police raced to quell a demonstration blocking Liberia's busiest highway Saturday as an angry crowd protested the government's delays in collecting the bodies of Ebola victims.
In Guinea, where the deadly Ebola outbreak emerged in March, health officials announced Saturday that the country was closing its land borders with Liberia and Sierra Leone - two of the countries where the killer virus has now spread and where deaths are mounting.
The World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreak an international health emergency Friday. The growing unease in Liberia, where nearly 300 people have died from the gruesome disease, raises the specter of social unrest.
Several bodies had been lying by the roadside for two days in the central town of Weala, 50 miles (75 kilometers) from the capital of Monrovia, and no government agency had picked them up, residents said.
The Ebola virus spreads through the bodily fluids of its victims and many in West Africa have fallen ill after touching or handling corpses. Liberia's government has ordered that all Ebola victims be cremated amid community opposition to neighborhood burials for fear of further contamination.
Information Minister Lewis Brown sounded a warning on state radio Saturday.
"Security people are on their way to put things under control," Brown said, directing his comments to protesters. "We don't want people taking the law into their own hands."
The latest Ebola outbreak is the largest ever recorded for the disease and so far has killed at least 961 people, according to figures released Friday by the U.N. health agency. This outbreak emerged in Guinea and has since spread to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria.
The situation is particularly dire in Liberia, where the Doctors Without Borders charity group has described the conditions as "catastrophic."
"There are reports of dead bodies lying in streets and houses," said the group's emergency coordinator in Liberia, Lindis Hurum.
At least 40 health workers in Liberia have contracted Ebola in recent weeks and most of the city's hospitals are closed, Hurum said.
On Saturday, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was meeting with health workers at City Hall in Monrovia.
"The president wants to express the collective gratitude of the entire nation to our health care workers who have continued to make tremendous sacrifices for this country and people," said Brown.
State radio broadcaster Smith Toby called health workers "front-line soldiers" leading the fight against Ebola.
Liberia has launched "Operation White Shield" under which soldiers are deployed in different locations and at checkpoints outside the capital to discourage residents' movements, part of Sirleaf's emergency measures to better fight the disease.
Health workers were stationed next to soldiers at checkpoints Saturday, taking the temperatures of commuters. People with temperatures above normal were blocked from leaving.
Also Saturday, a Catholic humanitarian group based in Spain said a Congolese nun working in Liberia had died of Ebola.
The San Juan de Dios hospital order announced that Sister Chantal Pascaline died "from Ebola in the Hospital San Jose de Monrovia, despite the care she received from a volunteer nurse."
Pascaline belonged to the same order as a Spanish missionary priest and nun evacuated to Madrid by jet this week. Both are in stable condition in a Madrid hospital, officials say.
Associated Press writers Boubacar Diallo in Conakry, Guinea; Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, and Joe Wilson in Barcelona contributed to this report.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
No comments:
Post a Comment