Canadian journalist tests negative for Ebola but remains hospitalized

Kyodo

A Canadian journalist who traveled from West Africa and showed an elevated body temperature upon arrival at Tokyo’s Haneda airport Monday tested negative for the Ebola virus, the health ministry said Tuesday.

Out of an abundance of caution, the man — who currently shows no signs of fever — will remain hospitalized and under observation at the National Center for Global Health and Medicine in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward for at least three days, the ministry said.

He will be released if another blood test, to be carried out after three days, comes up negative, it added.

The man had worked in Liberia for around two months from Aug. 18.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet held its first Ebola prevention meeting of ministers the same day.

“We called this ministerial meeting to enhance our emergency response,” Abe said in opening remarks at the meeting after health minister Yasuhisa Shiozaki gave a briefing on the Haneda case, which could potentially be the country’s the first case of Ebola.

“(Ebola) infection has not been confirmed at this point, but we realize the importance of preparatory measures, including quarantine,” Abe added.

The Canadian man, who according to NHK is 45 years old, was in Liberia to report on Ebola in the hardest-hit country, and left West Africa about 10 days ago for Belgium, the ministry said. He arrived at Haneda airport Monday afternoon on an All Nippon Airways flight from London.

After declaring his travel history at the airport’s quarantine station he was found to have a fever of 37.8 C. He was then sent to the national center and a blood sample was sent to the National Institute of Infectious Diseases to see if it contained genes from the virus.

The health minister, speaking at a news conference after the anti-Ebola meeting, expressed some satisfaction with how Japanese officials handled the nearest thing to an Ebola case the country has faced.

“We were ready for all kinds of scenarios,” Shiozaki said. “We were able to carry out most of the procedures up until the test as we had prepared — the initial reaction after finding the patient at the quarantine station, transportation and police cooperation.”

Also Tuesday, ANA said quarantine authorities the previous night disinfected the aircraft the man had traveled on.

At a separate news conference, transport minister Akihiro Ota said officials took appropriate steps by checking the man’s itinerary between West Africa and Tokyo.

The number of people infected or suspected of being infected with Ebola has surpassed 10,000, with the death toll from the epidemic nearing 5,000, according to figures released by the World Health Organization last week.

Outside Africa, there have also been Ebola cases in Spain and the United States.

A total of 189 other passengers and 16 crew members were aboard the Boeing-777 aircraft, according to ANA. The airline has submitted a list of those passengers to the health ministry.

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  • Jamie Bakeridge

    Abundance of caution indeed! Negative test so he stays in hospital? Is he being held against his will? If so, why are the Canadian consular officials silent about this abuse of one of their nationals?

    • Oliver Mackie

      Abuse, phooey! 2 months in the country hardest hit by the disease, spent reporting on the disease (presumably in proximity of those suffering and/or treating it.) I’m surprised they let him get off the plane….

      • Jamie Bakeridge

        I am surprised they let him get off too – I do not understand why anyone is being let in to Japan from affected areas. That said, he has been let in and we now know he is the one guy we can certainly say in Tokyo does NOT have Ebola. So why detain him?

      • Oliver Mackie

        Jamie,

        Whilst I am no expert, my understanding is that at least two tests are needed, spaced quite a lot apart, to be absolutely sure someone has not been infected.

      • rossdorn

        It is very simple, the incubation period is three weeks. As long as you show no symptoms, you are not infectious. The problem is: The minute you show symptoms, you are highly infectious, and it is a disease that is 50% deadly.

        I am sure You and all the other do-gooders would love to be squeezed in a morning JR trian next to some who who suddenly starts bleeding from his eyes?

      • Oliver Mackie

        Sorry, I’m at a total loss as to how you reached your conclusion of my being a ‘do-gooder’ from my posts here…..
        I am of the opinion that he should never have been allowed off the plane.

      • Miki

        You do not suddenly start bleeding from the eyes. That is the last stage of the disease. Before then you would have been too weak from stooling and vomiting to even consider boarding a train.

      • japanperson

        So you’re just gonna jump on the band wagon of “he must be detained against his will!!!” You would be pretty glad they just happened to “detain” someone that actually did step off with ebola. Everyone is freaking out about it but if you were in West Africa, somewhat near ebola infected people, you should be detained. Actually, they say ebola can incubate beyond the 21 day mark.

  • Ahojanen

    Why not all travellers taking a compulsory checkup somewhere in West Africa prior to their departure? And without a medical record airport officials can deny their entry (of course some double-check measures should be taken at destination airport). That’s how we can minimise the impact of Ebola outbreak.

    • kension86

      There was a compulsory checkup in Africa, but it’s a simple one that only checks whether they have fever or not.

      I mean, it’s poor countries over there.

  • alain

    …maybe because he has a Japanese name and wants to visit his family in Japan ?……

  • rossdorn

    There is the usual PCR testing method for viral diseases like Ebola, the same we used when AIDS started. The result shows after 12 to 24 hours, and that test has been used on him.
    The problem is that you can already be a carrier, yet have the test saying “negative”. So a person being “clean” at lift off in Monrovia can start bleeding when landing here. Then you will perfect isolation for 300 passengers at Haneda/Narita.
    (For the perfectionists: I do know that this is a version of Ebola where the first symptoms are not bleeding)

    There are extensive reports around on the internet. Living in Japan, having to rely on japanese specialist, the kind that brought you Fukushima, I suggest you do some research yourself….

    • Miki

      Alarmist

  • Kamran Mackey

    Because he is a Japanese Canadian. He was born in Japan. but moved to Canada when he was 4 with his family.