A plane at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport carried an Ebola patient, Frontier Airlines reports.
The patient, identified as Amber Vinson, 29, flew into Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Oct. 10 and out Oct. 13. She came to Akron to visit family, the Ohio Department of Health reports.
A statement from the Department adds, "Ohio has swiftly acted and is working with the CDC and Summit County health officials to identify people who may have been in close contact with the health care worker and implement quarantine as necessary. In addition, Ohio is working with the airline to identify individuals on her return flight to Dallas.
“The Ohio Department of Health has been working since July on its preparedness plan in the event that Ohio ever got positive case in the state, and we’re confident in our efforts to respond efficiently and effectively,” said Dr. Mary DiOrio, State Epidemiologist and interim chief of the Ohio Department of Health’s Division of Prevention and Health Promotion."
The plane, cleaned at a remote runway at the airport, is a Frontier Airlines plane. The airline reported that a patient who flew on flight 1143 from Cleveland to Dallas/Fort Worth Oct. 13 later tested positive for Ebola.
The patient flew into Cleveland Oct. 10 on Frontier Flight 1142, the airline added.
The patient showed no symptoms or signs of illness while on the flight, the crew told the airline. The flight carried 132 passengers.
Anyone who traveled on the flight should contact the CDC at 1-800-CDC-INFO. Public health officials will begin interviewing passengers about the flight, answering their questions and arranging follow-up. Anyone who is found to be at risk will be monitored.
The plane has been decontaminated twice and is back in service, Director of Port Control Ricky Smith said during a news conference today, and on its way to Denver.
