The last four Ebola patients in Liberia were discharged Monday from a clinic in the capital, Monrovia, meaning there were no more confirmed carriers of the deadly virus in the West African country. The group of four, released to cheers and applause, were part of a new wave of Ebola
infections in Margibi County, just outside Monrovia, discovered in late June. Two other people confirmed to have had Ebola have since died. More than 11,200 people have died from Ebola since the current outbreak emerged in December 2013 in neighboring Guinea. Liberia was declared free of Ebola on May 9 but then reported a new case nearly two months later. The outbreak is still active in Sierra Leone and Guinea. Health experts are not sure why Ebola resurfaced in Liberia, although genetic tests on the first case in the new wave of infections show the virus probably remained latent in the country. Officials think that sexual transmission is the most likely explanation. A country is not declared free of Ebola until 42 days have passed with no new cases.
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