Nigeria’s index patient of Ebola has been evacuated from the country, according to report.
Recall that the Nigerian government confirmed the Country’s first Ebola case in twelve years last Wednesday, saying the patient travelled from Uganda. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) had also disclosed that the condition of the patient had deteriorated into “multi-organ failure”
However, Arise News reports that the patient was flown out of the country around 6am on Monday in an air ambulance at the private jet wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.
According to the media outlet, the patient, who is a woman and wife of a Swiss diplomat, was evacuated through a medivac which was waiting at the airport.
A convoy, which included ambulances and a diplomatic vehicle and reportedly drove in from Abuja city centre, took part in the evacuation. The three vehicle convoy had an international Agency vehicle entering the Private Jet terminal of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport.
Airport officials were said to have shut down the private wing of the airport but videos of the evacuation exercise were obtained by Arise News. In one of the videos, crews were seen evacuating the sick passenger suspected to be the Ebola index case due to the special nature of the medical evacuation.
The Federal Government has not made an official statement on the evacuation of the index patient as of the time of filing this report; it is understood that an announcement will be made only after the plane has taken off and is outside Nigerian airspace.
