Ebola Patients in Liberia Flee From Armed Looters

Armed men claiming that "there's no Ebola" in Liberia raided a quarantine center for the deadly disease in Monrovia, Liberia overnight, prompting at least 20 patients infected with the deadly virus to flee, a witness said Sunday.

"They broke down the door and looted the place. The patients have all gone," said Rebecca Wesseh, who witnessed the attack and whose report was confirmed by residents and the head of Health Workers Association of Liberia, George Williams.

Williams said the unit housed 29 patients who were receiving preliminary treatment before being taken to hospital. It was unclear how many are now at large.

"They had all tested positive for Ebola," he said, adding that nine had died, without elaborating.

Wesseh said she heard the assailants shouting that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf "is broke", adding: "She wants money. There's no Ebola" in Liberia.

Wesseh said the mostly young men armed with clubs broke into the isolation unit set up in a high school in a Monrovia suburb.

Nurses also fled the attack, Wesseh said.