Mumbai authorities brace up for Ebola entering country

Mumbai is gearing up to tackle the potential threat of Ebola virus, which has claimed close to 932 lives in Africa. Also, 45,000 Indians are currently living in four African countries where the virus has become pandemic.

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) executive health officer has written to Airport Authority of India (AAI) and the Maharashtra state government for detailed guidelines to tackle the disease. With the threat of Ebola looming large, the central ministry of health on Wednesday issued a detailed advisory to all states in the country.

"The BMC executive health officer has called for a meeting with medical experts from KEM, Nair and Sion Hospitals and medical colleges to chart out an action plan to tackle Ebola. Experts from medicine and microbiology departments will attend the meeting on Friday," said Dr Mangala Gomare, head, epidemiology cell, BMC.

Detailed plan will be charted out to track process to investigate or report cases, methodologies of preventive screening and treatment protocols will also be put in place. "We have written to the AAI to ask them if travellers are being screened at the international arrivals of Mumbai airport or any advisories have been put in place for public view," said Dr Gomare.

Sources claim that, Airport Health Organization (AHO) which functions under central ministry of health has put in over a dozen medical experts round the shifts for the screening purpose of the passengers, with special emphasis during the arrival timings of the flights from Africa. Though there are no direct flights, Kenyan airways, Ethiopian and Emirates airlines are three airlines which are used by the passengers to fly from Africa. Guinea, Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone are the countries where the epidemic has spread.

An airport official said that they received the notification regarding Ebola on Wednesday evening. The communication from the ministry states that about 50-60 Indian families are in the process of leaving Liberia for India due to the epidemic. Liberia has over 3000 Indians.

"We have put health alert standees at the arrival section of the airport, asking the passengers to report to the health officer if they have any of the symptoms related to Ebola." said an airport spokesperson. "We have further alerted the nearby government hospitals to accommodate the infected passengers, in case the emergency arises," the spokesperson added.

The Ebola causing virus reportedly spreads through contact with blood, body fluids and contact with the infected person. Continuous fever, body pain, sore throat, nausea are some of the symptoms, indicating that the person may have got infected. The epidemic has so far claimed the lives of over 932.