Accessibility links
West Africa West Africa
Stories About

West Africa

Tuesday

Tests Of New Ebola Drugs Could Take Place As Early As November

Some potential new Ebola drugs will be tested at treatment centers like this one run by Doctors Without Borders near Monrovia. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
John Moore/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

Tests Of New Ebola Drugs Could Take Place As Early As November

New drugs and vaccines can take years to develop. But health officials and researchers are accelerating tests of experimental drugs to fight the outbreak in West Africa.

Tests Of New Ebola Drugs Could Take Place As Early As November

Listen · 4:25
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/352505596/352661396" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Saturday

Friday

Promised Help To Fight Ebola Arriving At 'Speed Of A Turtle'

Five ambulances, donated by the U.S. to help combat Ebola, are lined up after a ceremony attended by Sierra Leone's president, Ernest Bai Koroma, in Freetown on Sept. 10. Michael Duff/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Michael Duff/AP

Goats and Soda

Promised Help To Fight Ebola Arriving At 'Speed Of A Turtle'

The head of a leading aid group warned the United Nations that the situation in West Africa is desperate. U.N. officials said they're getting help on the ground as quickly as possible.

Promised Help To Fight Ebola Arriving At 'Speed Of A Turtle'

Listen · 3:46
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/351553847/351678391" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

Monday

A Case Of Mistaken Identity Sends Healthy Boy To An Ebola Ward

A health worker, wearing personal protective equipment, returns to her ambulance after transporting a patient to the Hastings treatment center outside Freetown. The center is the only one run exclusively by locals. Francisco Leong/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Francisco Leong/AFP/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

A Case Of Mistaken Identity Sends Healthy Boy To An Ebola Ward

An ambulance in Sierra Leone is sent out to pick up a suspected patient. But after two wrong turns and several stops for directions, it arrives at the home of a 14-year-old boy with no signs of Ebola.

A Case Of Mistaken Identity Sends Healthy Boy To An Ebola Ward

Listen · 4:51
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/350524722/350524723" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Friday

Inside An Ebola Kit: A Little Chlorine And A Lot Of Hope

Chlorine can stop the Ebola virus. So medical workers disinfect their hands often at the Doctors Without Borders treatment center in Kailahun, Sierra Leone. Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

Inside An Ebola Kit: A Little Chlorine And A Lot Of Hope

The Ebola epidemic is growing exponentially. And clinics don't have space for patients. So the U.S. government is giving families kits for treating people at home. Will this help slow the epidemic?

Inside An Ebola Kit: A Little Chlorine And A Lot Of Hope

Listen · 2:57
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/349908367/349908368" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

A Frightening Curve: How Fast Is The Ebola Outbreak Growing?
Source: Columbia Prediction of Infectious Diseases, World Health Organization Credit: Alyson Hurt/NPR

Goats and Soda

A Frightening Curve: How Fast Is The Ebola Outbreak Growing?

Health leaders now say the Ebola epidemic is growing exponentially. That means, if nothing changes in the next few weeks, we could see at least 60,000 Ebola cases by the end of 2014.

A Frightening Curve: How Fast Is The Ebola Outbreak Growing?

Listen · 3:58
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/349341606/349626333" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Wednesday

Will Obama's Plan Bring The Ebola Outbreak Under Control?

President Obama meets with Emory University doctors and health care workers during his visit Tuesday to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

Will Obama's Plan Bring The Ebola Outbreak Under Control?

The ambitious scope of the intervention has impressed aid workers, who have been crying for help for months. But the plan will need to be implemented quickly to get ahead of the spread of infections.

Will Obama's Plan Bring The Ebola Outbreak Under Control?

Listen · 3:03
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/349005780/349192743" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Friday

The Changing Face Of West Africa Has Fueled The Ebola Crisis

Ebola has spread through Monrovia, Liberia's congested capital city. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
John Moore/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

The Changing Face Of West Africa Has Fueled The Ebola Crisis

Population growth, the cutting down of forests and increased mobility all contribute to the current crisis. "The virus hasn't changed," says one infectious disease expert. "Africa has changed."

The Changing Face Of West Africa Has Fueled The Ebola Crisis

Listen · 4:09
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/346142023/346165051" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

How Do We Stop Ebola? WHO Declares War On The Virus

Workers wait to spray disinfectant on medical staff after they treat Ebola patients at a clinic run by Doctors Without Borders, in Monrovia, Liberia. Tommy Trenchard for NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Tommy Trenchard for NPR

Goats and Soda

How Do We Stop Ebola? WHO Declares War On The Virus

Over the next six months, about 20,000 people will get Ebola. Half will likely die. To stop the virus, the World Health Organization says it needs thousands of health care workers and $600 million.

How Do We Stop Ebola? WHO Declares War On The Virus

Listen · 8:51
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/345870450/345886208" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Thursday

How Much Bigger Is The Ebola Outbreak Than Official Reports Show?

Workers with the aid group Doctors Without Borders prepare a new Ebola treatment center near Monrovia, Liberia, on Sunday. The facility has 120 beds, making it the largest Ebola isolation clinic in history. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
John Moore/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

How Much Bigger Is The Ebola Outbreak Than Official Reports Show?

The World Health Organization says the official number of Ebola cases and deaths may "vastly underestimate" the scale of the outbreak. So how bad is it really?

How Much Bigger Is The Ebola Outbreak Than Official Reports Show?

Listen · 3:53
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/341992005/342095408" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Saturday