Dr Modupeh  John Eric Cole, a senior physician at the Connaught Hospital in Freetown, was diagnosed with Ebola last Friday and taken to the specialist Kailahun Treatment Centre the following day.

His death was confirmed by the country’s chief medical officer, Dr Brima Kargbo.

“We are all very, very saddened,” he said. Dr Cole was a “very powerful presence in the country’s medical team and has been very instrumental in the fight against the Ebola virus.”

Cole’s death came about two weeks after Sierra Leone’s leading anti-Ebola expert, Dr Umar Khan, also died from the virus.