ArcelorMittal locks down Liberia site after coronavirus outbreak

The world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal said Monday that it will lock down its concession near the Liberian port city of Buchanan for two weeks, after discovering several coronavirus cases there.

Residents in the concession area -- which includes housing and office complexes -- will be required to stay in their homes throughout the period, the firm said.

Non-essential staff will also no longer be able to travel into the area for work.

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ArcelorMittal employs some 2,300 people in the West African state and ships iron ore mined in the north through the port of Buchanan.

Authorities have recorded 219 coronavirus cases to date in Liberia, with 20 fatalities -- a low number compared with virus-stricken Europe and the United States.

But as with other poor countries in the region, there are fears that it is ill-equipped to handle a large outbreak.

The nation of some 4.8 million people was already badly hit during West Africa's 2014-16 Ebola crisis, which killed more than 4,800 people in the country.

In a statement on Monday, ArcelorMittal said that an initial coronavirus case in its Buchanan concession area was discovered on May 14, followed by "a number of additional positive COVID-19 cases" on May 16.

The company was unable to clarify immediately how many people have been infected in total on its premises, nor how many people live in the concession area, nor whether the lockdown would affect its operations.

However, an ArcelorMittal employee who declined to be named said that some four people had been infected.