Letter from Waterloo, Sierra Leone
Recently we received an email from one of the recipients of the funds that the Waterloo Partnership provide to assist people in Sierra Leone. Cynthia, who is a student nurse and has her fees and uniform paid for by the Partnership, wrote the email to the trustees. It is copied below, unedited and in full.
The current situation.
There are no schools going on and no colleges due to the Ebola situation. I was promoted to final year in my nursing course.
There is a SURGE going on, different groups are doing house-to-house search in Waterloo. Many sick people are being removed and taken to holding centres and most of them are Ebola positive. There are many quarantined houses in Waterloo.
There are less deaths in Waterloo but more quarantined houses. – quarantined places like Kadia Area, Fullah Town and Monkey Bush, which is still a hot spot.
Due to the Ebola crisis, markets are opened from 6am to 6pm, and on Saturday 6am to 12. On Sunday there is no market.
It was really a sad incident at one Monkey Bush, where there is a lot of children whose parents died due to Ebola. These children are really sad and not happy. I always witness the supply done by Mrs Aminata Mansaray during the supply of food and toiletries. They have been neglected by their late parents family, but some of the neighbours that have pity for them and through the help of Aminata. These children are very helpless and they really need help.
The children Mrs Aminata Mansaray is presently helping the condition is worse. They are stigmatized in the society – no one wants to help with them. They need to be taken care of and provided with their basic necessities of food, shelter and clothing. As their parents who have died they have no hope to continue their education. They also need education.
Cynthia Reffel, student nurse
January 2015