68 Tonnes of Aid Supplies Land in Liberia to Fight Ebola

Sixty eight metric tonnes of health and hygiene supplies have been flown into Liberia's capital, Monrovia, to ramp up the Ebola response, the UN Children' Fund (UNICEF) has confirmed.

According to the agency, the basic emergency items are for front-line health workers to protect themselves and help prevent the spread of the virus.

There have been over 1,000 confirmed or suspected cases of Ebola in Liberia with 613 deaths linked to the outbreak.
UNICEF attributes the rapid spread of the disease in part to the country's weakened health care system which had been seriously damaged by years of civil war.

The shipment also includes 27 metric tonnes of water purification and disinfectant tablets and 450,000 pairs of latex gloves.

Also on board were supplies of intravenous fluids, oral rehydration salts and ready-to-use therapeutic food to feed patients undergoing treatment.

UNICEF is using outlets like print and radio to disseminate prevention messages and traditional communicators to help with the anti-Ebola campaign.

SOURCE: Jocelyne Sambira, UNRadio.