Wednesday 8 October 2014

News: Female passenger with Ebola-like symptoms makes A.A flight emergency land at Texas airport

An airplane made an emergency landing at Midland International Airport in Texas late on Tuesday after a female passenger became ill and the cabin crew grew concerned that she could have the deadly Ebola virus.American Airlines Flight 2791 from Dallas was scheduled to land at Midland just after 11 pm, but just 20 minutes before landing the captain called to alert authorities that an unnamed passenger was displaying flu-like symptoms.
With the entire country on high alert over the Ebola outbreak in Texas, the crew of Flight 2791 were concerned that the passenger may have the deadly disease - despite the face she had come from Turkey and not an infected region.
The woman was vomiting - an important symptom of Ebola - but according to Public Information Officer Sarah Bustilloz she didn’t have a fever - another important symptom.
Bustilloz told CBS7 that it is ‘highly unlikely’ that the woman has Ebola.
Another important factor that makes Ebola unlikely is that the woman wasn't coming from an infected area. She had traveled from Istanbul, Turkey through London to Dallas and then on to Midland.
'At this point, we are considering it not to be Ebola but we never want to rule anything completely out. It's highly unlikely that it is Ebola,' said Bustilloz.
Local authorities however were taking no chances on Tuesday night and as the plane touched down on the tarmac, emergency crews were on hand and emergency lights flashing.
Midland Fire Department personnel boarded the plane in hazmat suits to assess the situation and the woman was transported to Midland Memorial Hospital following disease control procedures.
After being monitored by local health and emergency management authorities, the woman was allowed to leave.
Officials have contact information for all 69 people aboard the flight and have asked that if any display any flu-like symptoms they are to immediately notify their local health department as a precautionary measure.
The woman was transported to Midland Memorial Hospital following disease control procedures, but later released as local authorities determined it was 'highly unlikely' that she has the Ebola virus

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