No extra checks for Ebola at Brussels Airport

The new government has no plans for the moment to introduce extra checks at Brussels Airport on passengers coming from the part of West Africa currently hit by the Ebola epidemic, a spokesperson for federal health minister Maggie De Block said.

The Italian presidency of the EU has called together health ministers in Brussels on Thursday to look at the possibility of common measures to be introduced at all EU entry points.

The decision comes despite pleas from experts for more and stricter checks. According to Marc Van Ranst, a virologist in charge of the government’s flu campaigns, hospitals have already received information about the protocols to be followed, but a simple temperature check at Brussels Airport would provide additional protection, he said.

“There should be an extra temperature check for passengers landing from infected areas such as Conakry, Monrovia or Freetown,” said Van Ranst. “The US and the UK already carry out these checks. It’s a small inconvenience because it concerns only six flights a week.”

Temperature checks, he continued, would help identify passengers who are already developing a fever. Passengers travelling from the infected areas already undergo temperature checks at departure.

Meanwhile, in Brussels’ University Hospital, a patient suspected of having Ebola was said to be in a stable condition. This is the third time the hospital has issued an alarm of suspected Ebola. The first two cases, turned out to be false alarms.

The current patient is known to have travelled to Guinea and to have returned to Brussels at the beginning of this month. He was brought to hospital suffering a high fever, and the emergency room was closed off. The man’s blood is being tested, but a definitive answer will not be available until tomorrow.

“The patient might have Ebola, but there’s a good chance it will turn out to be malaria,” said Vinciane Charlier, spokesperson for health minister Maggie De Block. “To avoid taking any risks, the patient has been placed in quarantine.”

photo courtesy Sébastien Aperghis-Tramoni/Wikimedia