Sierra Leone’s government will be enforcing a multi-day lockdown, in the hopes of curbing the Ebola outbreak, which has killed more than 2,000 people across West Africa.

Citizens of Sierra Leone will not be allowed to leave their homes for several days. There are conflicting reports on the length of the lockdown, with various publications saying it will last either three (Sept. 19 to 21) or four days (Sept. 18 to 21). Abdulai Bayraytay, a Sierra Leone government spokesperson, said the dates were chosen to give people enough time to stock up on food and other provisions before the ban on movement goes into effect.

It is Sierra Leone’s latest effort to prevent the virus from spreading further in West Africa. Last month, the World Health Organization announced that the Ebola outbreak could exceed 20,000 cases. More than 2,000 people have died so far, according to the United Nations, and that number is climbing.

Ben Kargbo, a presidential advisor in Sierra Leone, told Reuters that the “aggressive” lockdown is “necessary to deal with the spread of Ebola once and for all.” As of Friday, 491 people have died from the outbreak in the country alone, according to WHO figures.

However, some are questioning whether the measure will help. Doctors Without Borders said it “will be extremely difficult for health workers to accurately identify cases through door-to-door screening.”

Even if more suspected cases are identified during the lockdown, the group added that Sierra Leone doesn’t have enough beds for them.

“Without a place to take suspected cases — to screen and treat them — the approach cannot work,” Doctors Without Borders said Saturday. “It has been our experience that lockdowns and quarantines do not help control Ebola, as they end up driving people underground and jeopardizing the trust between people and health providers. This leads to the concealment of potential cases and ends up spreading the disease further.”

A physician said Friday that health care in Sierra Leone’s capital of Freetown has “crumbled” because many people were terrified to go to hospitals, and some doctors are wary of treating those who do show up. Speaking at the launch of a public education program in Freetown, Dr. Kwame O’Neil said patients suffering from all kinds of ailments are dying for lack of treatment because of these fears.

One young girl died of appendicitis when, after showing up at a hospital, a doctor there denied he was a doctor and refused to treat her, O’Neil said.

A recent genetic study showed that Ebola likely entered Sierra Leone a decade ago. Scientists believe the disease was carried by about a dozen individuals, who all attended the same funeral of an Ebola patient in Guinea.

Ebola Outbreak: Everything You Need to Know

Additional reporting by The Associated Press

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