Keyamo puts 46 contacts of Ebola patient on no-fly list for 21 days

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has told the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to put 46 people who had contact with Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola patient on a no-fly list for 21 days.

Mr Keyamo shared this news on Wednesday after a virtual meeting with the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Ali Pate. They discussed ways to handle the outbreak.

The no-fly list includes 44 people who were in contact with the woman at a hospital after she showed symptoms. It also includes two members of her domestic staff.

The minister mentioned that efforts are ongoing to isolate these individuals while health officials check if they contracted the virus. He instructed the NCAA to alert all domestic and international airlines about the travel restriction immediately.

Mr Keyamo also directed the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to boost Ebola surveillance and response measures at all international airports in Nigeria.

He explained that the measures include better health screening, temperature checks, tracking the travel histories of passengers, digital health declarations, and working with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC).

These steps came after earlier warnings about Ebola outbreaks in the region. Nigeria confirmed its first Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory on Tuesday. This led to contact tracing and other measures to contain the disease.

The patient is a woman who recently arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda. She is currently being treated in isolation at a private hospital in Abuja.

According to PREMIUM TIMES, health officials have identified 44 close contacts of the patient and have started tracing others who may have been exposed to the virus.

The 21-day restriction imposed by Mr Keyamo aims to stop the identified contacts from flying while they may develop symptoms.

Ebola virus disease can lead to serious illness. It spreads through direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person or through contaminated items. The virus usually has an incubation period of 2 to 21 days.