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Ebola

Fear lingers in Mali despite no new Ebola cases

Soumaila T. Diarra
Special for USA TODAY
Health officials work at an Ebola isolation center in Bamako, Mali, on Nov. 11, 2014.

BAMAKO, Mali — A 17-year-old boy hawking disinfectant soap on the streets of this capital city says his business has grown as Malians have taken to washing their hands throughout the day.

"It's because of Ebola," Yacouba Bamaba said.

Even after the Malian government announced this month that the last person in the country with Ebola had recovered, locals remain paranoid about the virus that flared up briefly in Mali but has killed thousands in West Africa since the spring.

There have been more than 19,000 confirmed or suspected cases of Ebola in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone and more than 7,500 deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Six of the eight people who contracted the virus in Mali died.

When concerns of mass contagion were at their height, Malian authorities were monitoring around 270 people in the country for signs of Ebola. Today, they're monitoring 26.

But, Bamako residents note that 42 days, or twice the virus' incubation period, must pass before WHO declares countries Ebola-free. As a result, fears linger in the streets of the Malian capital, threatening the holiday spirit.

"We must not forget that national celebrations like (New Year's Eve) and Christmas can be opportunities for Ebola, as people gather in public rallies," said Sitan Sangare, 34, a Bamako resident.

The Malian outbreak was triggered by an ailing 70-year-old grand imam from Guinea, who crossed into the country in October and checked into a clinic where he died within two days of Ebola. Another Ebola victim in Mali was a 2-year-old girl who died in Kayes, in the country's southwest, after contracting the virus in Guinea.

That connection between Ebola and Guinea led many to call on Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita to close the border between the two countries.

"All that is happening is the fault of the government who refused to close the country's borders with Guinea Conakry," said Amara Coulibaly, a high school teacher in Bamako. "Neighboring countries that closed their doors to people coming from Guinea are Ebola-free."

But closing the border could lead to illegal, unmonitored crossings, and it would most certainly be economically catastrophic.

Mali's southwestern border with Guinea is in a mining region where people often cross to work or sell their wares. Landlocked Mali would also be closing one of its main access routes to the ocean.

Still, Keita has tightened Mali's border controls. At airports and highway checkpoints, officials check travelers for higher-than-normal temperatures. At the Guinean border, guards check temperatures and force travelers to wash their hands.

Clean hands won't suppress people's fears, however.

"It is hard to change habits," Coulibaly said. "It was difficult for me to meet someone and greet him without shaking his hands. But that was in the past. Now I avoid touching people since I'm convinced that every individual I meet can transmit the Ebola virus if he is infected."

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