Here’s what we know so far about Ebola in the United States:
Thomas Eric Duncan died Wednesday at a Texas hospital, 10 days after he was admitted.
“Mr. Duncan succumbed to an insidious disease, Ebola. He fought courageously in this battle. Our professionals, the doctors and nurses in the unit, as well as the entire Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas community, are also grieving his passing,” hospital spokesman Wendell Watson said in a statement.
One question family members still haven’t found the answer for: “Would the outcome have been different if doctors had admitted Duncan to hospital on September 25, the first time he showed up with a fever and stomach pain?”
READ: The First Case of Ebola To Hit The U.S. Was…
“What if they had taken him right away? And what if they had been able to get treatment to him earlier?” Pastor George Mason of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas told reporters.
“He got sick and went to the hospital and was turned away, and that’s the turning point here,” the Rev. Jesse Jackson, a spokesman for the family. While that is still being investigated, another report came through.
A Dallas County sheriff’s deputy who entered the apartment where the now-deceased Duncan stayed was hospitalized out of an “abundance of caution” Wednesday after becoming ill, officials said.
The officer, identified by multiple outlets as Sgt. Michael Monnig, was taken to urgent care in Frisco, Texas after coming into contact with family members of Thomas Eric Duncan.
Monnig came into contact with the family members when he went to their home to deliver a quarantine order.
The officer was not wearing protective gear.
Officials, nonetheless, said the deputy never came into direct contact with Duncan and stressed that he was “not experiencing all of Ebola’s symptoms,” only displaying “a few” indicators of a possible Ebola infection.
“The latest information we have is no definite contact, no definite symptoms” Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said.
“We are being told that the risk is minimal,” Frisco’s mayor echoed, “But we are taking all precautions.”
Health officials say none of the family has exhibited symptoms and wouldn’t have been contagious; the disease can be spread only through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an already sick person.
Texas Health Presbyterian Dallas released a statement about the new case.
“Right now, there are more questions than answers about this case,” it said. “Our professional staff of nurses and doctors is prepared to examine the patient, discuss any findings with appropriate agencies and officials.”
The deputy is not among 48 people who have been monitored by health officials after having had varying degrees of contact with Duncan, and Piland said his exposure is being treated as “a low-risk event.”
Here’s What You Need To Do:
If you must travel to an area affected by the 2014 Ebola outbreak, the CDC advises you protect yourself by doing the following:
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