COSTA RICA NEWS –How Ebola affect Costa Rica? Via The Weekly Standard, Department of Defense News reported on Wednesday that Marine Corps Gen. John F. Kelly, the commander of the U.S. Southern Command, fears that the self-evident ability of the American medical system to successfully cope with Ebola will lead millions of Central American residents to make refugees of themselves and head toward the United States.
This is particularly possible scenario if the disease gets to Haiti or Central America, he said. If the disease gets to countries like Guatemala, Honduras or El Salvador, it will cause a panic and people will flee the region, the general said.
“If it breaks out, it’s literally, ‘Katie bar the door,’ and there will be mass migration into the United States,” Kelly said. “They will run away from Ebola, or if they suspect they are infected, they will try to get to the United States for treatment.”
Also, transnational criminal networks smuggle people and those people can be carrying Ebola, the general said. Kelly spoke of visiting the border of Costa Rica and Nicaragua with U.S. embassy personnel. At that time, a group of men “were waiting in line to pass into Nicaragua and then on their way north,” he recalled.
An Ebola outbreak in Costa Rica could severely damage the county’s tourism industry.
A suspected case of Ebola could affect tourist travel to the country and not without justification. Several tour operators the Q! spoke to were in agreement that an Ebola case would lead to massive cancellations.
Related: Colombia Denying Entry to Recent Travellers to Ebola-Hit Countries
First and foremost, travelers should know that Ebola is preventable, and the main reason it has spread seemingly uncontrollably through West Africa is lack of health infrastructure and poor understanding of basic precautions locally.
Ebola is be transmitted through contact with bodily fluids such as saliva, sweat, or blood from animals or humans. It is not airborne or transmitted by casual contact. This does not mean the disease should be taken lightly, but it can be prevented largely with soap and water or anti-bacterial hand sanitizer. Travelers are also urged not to eat bush meat—that is, meat from the remains of monkeys, bats, or rats—as it may be responsible for transferring Ebola from animals to humans.
The Frontier Case
On the morning of October 14, the second healthcare worker in the United States reported to the hospital with a low-grade fever and was isolated. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirms that the second healthcare worker who tested positive last night for Ebola traveled by air Oct. 13, the day before she reported symptoms.
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Frontier airlines operates flights between Denver, CO (DEN) and San Jose, Costa Rica (SJO) seasonally, four days a week beginning December 20, 2014.
[/su_pullquote]Because of the proximity in time between the evening flight and first report of illness the following morning, CDC is reaching out to passengers who flew on Frontier Airlines flight 1143 Cleveland to Dallas/Fort Worth Oct. 13.
CDC is asking all 132 passengers on Frontier Airlines flight 1143 Cleveland to Dallas/Fort Worth on October 13 (the flight route was Cleveland to Dallas Fort Worth and landed at 8:16 p.m. CT) to call 1 800-CDC INFO (1 800 232-4636). After 1 p.m. ET, public health professionals will begin interviewing passengers about the flight, answering their questions, and arranging follow up. Individuals who are determined to be at any potential risk will be actively monitored.
The healthcare worker exhibited no signs or symptoms of illness while on flight 1143, according to the crew. Frontier is working closely with CDC to identify and notify passengers who may have traveled on flight 1143 on Oct. 13. Passengers who may have traveled on flight 1143 should contact CDC at 1 800-CDC INFO (1 800 232-4636).
Frontier Airlines Statement
“At approximately 1:00 a.m. MT on October 15, Frontier was notified by the CDC that a customer traveling on Frontier Airlines flight 1143 Cleveland to Dallas/Fort Worth on Oct. 13 has since tested positive for the Ebola virus. The flight landed in Dallas/Fort Worth at 8:16 p.m. local and remained overnight at the airport having completed its flying for the day at which point the aircraft received a thorough cleaning per our normal procedures which is consistent with CDC guidelines prior to returning to service the next day. It was also cleaned again in Cleveland last night. Previously the customer had traveled from Dallas Fort Worth to Cleveland on Frontier flight 1142 on October 10.
Customer exhibited no symptoms or sign of illness while on flight 1143, according to the crew. Frontier responded immediately upon notification from the CDC by removing the aircraft from service and is working closely with CDC to identify and contact customers who may traveled on flight 1143.
Customers who may have traveled on either flight should contact CDC at 1 800 CDC-INFO.
The safety and security of our customers and employees is our primary concern. Frontier will continue to work closely with CDC and other governmental agencies to ensure proper protocols and procedures are being followed.”
Is Ebola Out of Control?
The Washington Post seems to think so. In an article “Out of Control“, the WP tells the story of how the world’s health organizations failed to stop the Ebola disaster.
The CDC cites ‘Breach’ in Ebola protocol in the second Texas Case. CDC director, Tom Frieden, told MSNBC, ‘The only thing like this has been AIDS’.
“I will say that in the 30 years that I have been working in public health, the only thing like this has been AIDS,” Frieden said last Thursday at the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington, D.C. “We have to work now so that this is not the world’s next AIDS.”
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul cautioned on Wednesday that the government’s health experts may not be as capable of containing Ebola as they’re telling Americans and that the CDC is downplaying the threat.
‘It’s a big mistake to downplay and act as if “oh, this is not a big deal, we can control all this.” This could get beyond our control,’ Paul, who has an MD in optometry from Duke University, told conservative radio host Laura Ingraham.
Sources: Washington Post; CDC;
