7 Nov 2015

At the scene: Tulip Mazumdar, BBC News, Sierra Leone

At the scene: Tulip Mazumdar, BBC News, Sierra Leone

This is the moment Sierra Leone has been waiting for. Thousands of people took to the streets of the capital on the run-up to midnight.
Women's groups came together to organise a march through the city centre; the final point was a 600-year-old cotton tree which sits on a huge roundabout. Usually, the area is jammed with cars, but last night it was packed with people. Some held up candles, others jumped around dancing and a military band led the procession through the city.
There were waves of celebrations, and then silence as names of some of the dead were beamed on to a screen. Health workers in particular were honoured for their bravery and sacrifice, they were some of the first to die when Ebola struck. Today is an enormous milestone for Sierra Leoneans, and people are overjoyed. But this historic moment, is bittersweet.

Neighbouring Liberia was declared Ebola-free in September following 4,800 deaths there.
A handful of cases are still being reported in neighbouring Guinea, and Sierra Leone has said it will take heightened security and health screening measures at their shared border.

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