Relief as passenger is found Ebola free at JKIA

The government Wednesday evening allayed fears of an Ebola case from a passenger who had arrived in the country aboard a KQ 550 fight.

Director of Medical Services Dr Nicholas Muraguri, said the passenger from Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was suffering from food poisoning.

“The passenger came in from Lubumbashi in DRC Congo and on arrival, started vomiting and was taken for medical check-up,” said Muraguri.

He said the passenger was released after the medical personnel at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) realized that it was not Ebola.

“We had to take the precaution to ensure that no such case is brought into the country,” said Muraguri.

Cabinet secretary for Health James Macharia also insisted it was food poisoning.

“It is true they have a suspected Ebola case but initial results indicate that it is food poisoning,” said Mr Macharia in a response to concerns on social media after word went viral that there was an Ebola case.

Last week Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) confirmed two Ebola deaths.

Wednesday a top official of the US government agency fighting the Ebola outbreak in Africa urged Kenya to now prepare for the arrival of the deadly disease.

“Every country, including Kenya, should be prepared for that first case,” said Dr Tom Kenyon, director of the Global Health Centre at the US Centres for Disease Control.