The Bangura Family
By Kieran McConville, Makargbo, Tonkolili, Sierra Leona, November 6, 2014
Mabinty Bangura sits outside her family home in the early morning sun, three-month-old Isatu in her lap and three-year-old Obai by her side. At eight years old, she is now looking after her brother and baby sister following the death of their mother, probably from Ebola, just over a week ago.
The household is under mandatory quarantine, but the children’s father has left to try to salvage what remains of this year’s rice harvest. “He was just starting to process the rice when Yeabu (his wife) got sick,” according to Gbassay Bangura, grandmother of the three children. “The birds have eaten a lot of it.”
According to Gbassy, Yeabu Kamara fell ill on October 23rd here in the village of Makargbo, and was taken to a holding center at nearby Mile 91, pending diagnosis. She died three days later. The family has not yet heard if the test for Ebola was positive. “She had a high fever, but no vomiting or diarrhea’” Gbassy says, “nobody around here has had Ebola, so I don’t know how she could have contracted it.” Information is difficult to come by. Testing laboratories are under pressure and information systems are weak.
The fact remains however, that families like the Banguras are struggling to cope with the loss of a parent and the imposition of quarantine. Baby Isatu has been ill over the past few days — “She is in pain and always crying,” Gbassy says. Food is in short supply. Members of Concern Worldwide and the Family Support Unit (FSU), which is attached to the police force, have come to visit the household. They bring rice and vegetables for young Mabinty to help feed the family, along with baby formula for Isatu.
The stigma that comes with Ebola makes people reluctant to admit that it may have caused the death of a family member.
Roseanne Kanu of Concern takes details of the family situation and the team discuss ways they can help. The local FSU estimate that there are as many as a hundred orphans or unaccompanied children in the area and many households under quarantine. Concern is looking for ways to provide ongoing support for affected families living in Tonkolili district, where the incidence of Ebola has been increasing.
