An unnamed 63-year-old passenger was vomiting and died during Nigeria-US (JFK, New York) flight, but Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials provided only a ‘cursory’ examination before stating there was no Ebola.
The man boarded an Arik Air plane out of Lagos, Nigeria, on Wednesday night, but
died before the plane reached its final destination.
The flight crew contacted the CDC, Port Authority and customs officials, who met the flight at the gate as it touched down, making 145 anxious travellers to stay on board.
The CDC officials then conducted inspection of the body and announced the dead passenger did not have Ebola. At the same time, the exact cause of death has not been named.
The accident understandably distressed passengers and crew alike. New York Republican Congressman Peter King immediately fired off a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Customs and Boarder Protection (CBP) challenging to know how the CDC officials were able to make such a resolve so quickly.
Between 70 and 100 passengers a day arrive at JFK from the Ebola epicenter countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, King mentioned, and they have admission to public washrooms and socialize with other passengers before their first screening.
Nigeria has had 20 confirmed Ebola cases this year. Meanwhile, there have been no new patients in recent months and, according to the World Health Organization, if there are no more by Monday, the nation will officially be declared ‘Ebola-free.’
No fewer than 4,493 people have died so far from the Ebola virus disease according to the World Health Organization. The first cases of the current epidemic were reported in Guinea in March 2014.
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