The Unexpected Screening Day

Imagine it. It’s the night before the release of the tickets to the movie you have been WAITING to come out for over a year and a half! You’ve gotten together with your best friends, roommates, and an assortment of other random people to camp outside of the theater overnight to be the first in line the next day when they open the doors to sell the tickets. You huddle together, perhaps with a tent or simply a sleeping bag on the sidewalk, chattering, laughing, and gradually dozing off into the night, eagerly anticipating the glory of your persistent wait of tickets the next morning!

Now, imagine this same nighttime scene outside of a similar wall. You are in line alongside 10, 50, or 100 other people sitting or lying down, huddled on blankets and makeshift beds. You’re eager for morning in this line as well, only instead of giggles and light-hearted chatter, worry and fear leave a tense silence among the gathering crowd. Instead of waiting for the tickets to your sought-after movie, you await the opportunity to see a medical doctor you or your loved one has been unable to afford these past 1, 3, or even 15 years. You’ve heard a mercy ship was coming into the port of Freetown, a ray of hope in your desperate and destitute situation. Perhaps now the tumor that has been growing on the side of your neck, encapsulating the left side of your face can be removed. Perhaps now your child’s bowed legs can be restored and they can walk to school without ridicule and isolation. Perhaps now your baby that has been unable to eat well because of their cleft lip can gain weight and fully smile at you for the first time. Perhaps… perhaps… perhaps…


All these were the hopes of the people who lined up outside of the national stadium in Freetown, Sierra Leone, the night before the mass screening on March 7th. I was told by one of the first patients I saw that morning, that he had slept in line all night long to secure his place in the line. Desperation converging with hope. Hope that relief might come. Hope that someone might take notice and be able to help. It was that hope that drove individuals and families to wait in line, not only all night for some, but for hours upon hours the next day in the 90+ degree F heat beneath the unforgiving rays of the African sun. Many people who came to us outside of the stadium walls had used a majority of their precious resources to pay to travel however far, to reach the stadium early that morning. Most did not even have food or water. The only thing that kept them in line, waiting for a chance to been seen, was hope.

Yesterday, March 7th, the mass screening day for Mercy Ships took place. I was a part of the mid-morning team (which meant I only had to leave at 5:30am rather than 4am like the security crew) that arrived around 6am to begin setting up chairs, tables, and signs to transform the Freetown national sports stadium into a fully functioning screening/triage center. By the light of headlamps and flashlights we set up and dispersed the furniture and medical supplies; excitement and anticipation building for this long-awaited day. Eager Mercy Ships volunteers from throughout the ship numerous areas (the galley, public relations, housekeeping, hospitality, and reception) as well as the medical teams (The eye team, dental team, doctors, surgeons, OR staff, and ward nurses) hummed with nervous expectation until the first of our patients began arriving with the first hour of light, and we began our screening day outreach. None of us knew the tragedy that was to come.

All morning I was working with one of our doctor’s and an OR nurse, screening for general surgery patients. With the help of two fantastic translators, our team of five began to evaluate all of the potential general surgical patients- mainly hernia repairs and goiters. We slowly gained momentum as the morning went on, getting into an efficient “groove” of seeing and assessing patients for surgical candidacy. Suddenly, around 11am, I got word from another staff member that there was trouble down at the gate of the stadium. Alison, the OR nurse working with us, left to assist other crew at the gate and I continued looking after patients with the doctor.

What happened in the next hour and a half – maybe 2 hours, was a blur. Through pieces of information here and there, I slowly heard that the “trouble” at the gate was, in fact, a storming of the awaiting crowd into the gate, trampling or injuring 13 people- one of which died, and two other left with life-threatening injuries. Our emergency response team, and the majority of our medical team was there triaging and caring for the injured patients. Before I knew it, non-medical staff were being escorted out and driven back to the ship. I tried to reassure patients as I waited for things to smooth back over into a flow of patients once again- only it didn’t. Within 30 minutes, we all evacuated the site leaving half-screened and unscreened patients behind. The entire Mercy Ships staff was heartbroken to have to leave SO many in need not only at the gate, but waiting in the buildings, unseen and unscheduled for surgery. It will take time for all of us to process through the terrible events of that day, but plans are being made as we speak to re-organize and continue screening. If you could please lift up the Sierra Leonean people, the victims of the gate storming, and the Mercy Ships staff in prayer, that would be greatly appreciated.

I would like to leave you with the words of Don Stephens, the Mercy Ships founder, regarding the events of screening day:

“Mercy Ships is deeply saddened by the tragic events that occurred today during medical screening at the Freetown National Stadium when a crowd stormed the gate resulting in several injuries and one life lost.

Mercy Ships personnel working at the site attended the injured and accompanied them to local hospitals.

‘Our hearts and prayers are with the individuals and families of those affected by today's events. The occurrence of this incident in the course of activities intended to restore lives is tragic. We move forward with tremendous sadness, but great determination, to assist as many people as possible in the next ten months,’ stated Mercy Ships Founder, Don Stephens.

Mercy Ships exists to serve the forgotten poor and has served Sierra Leone five times over the past two decades, also helping establish two land based health care facilities. For the next ten months, Mercy Ships will be providing surgeries for qualified patients while working alongside the Sierra Leonean Government to support its five-year healthcare plan and strengthen the functions of the national health system.”

Thank you for your continual (and previous) prayers. We all look forward to a new course and plan for future screening efforts and pray for comfort and God’s provision for those who were left unseen and untreated in the wake of what happened March 7th.