(CNN) — The United States ordered relatives of its embassy employees to leave Liberia as the African nation struggles to contain the Ebola epidemic.
Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone are battling the deadly Ebola virus, which has killed 932 people in those countries, according to the World Health Organization. The epidemic has also spread to Nigeria.
The U.S. Embassy is in the capital of Monrovia — one of the areas hardest-hit by the epidemic.
“The embassy recommended this step out of an abundance of caution, following the determination … that there is a lack of options for routine health care services at major medical facilities due to the Ebola outbreak,” the State Department said in a statement Thursday.
Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf said the fast-spreading disease has overwhelmed the nation’s healthcare system.
“The scope and scale of the epidemic, the virulence and deadliness of the virus now exceed the capacity and statutory responsibility of any one government agency or ministry,” she said.
She declared a 90-day state of emergency this week, which will allow her government to set up a series of measures to prevent the spread of the disease.
Washington said it’s sending experts to Liberia, including 12 specialists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and a 13-member disaster assistance response team from the United States Agency for International Development. (read more)