The United States Government has
donated equipment worth $5,000
to boost screening of the Ebola
Virus Disease at the Murtala
Muhammed International Airport so
as to contain its spread in Nigeria.
The US Consul General in Nigeria,
Mr. John Hawkins, made the
donation at the airport on Friday,
August 22, at the airport.
“The donation of the
equipment is a symbol of
willingness on the part of the
American Government to
assist Nigeria in any way
possible to combat the
scourge,” he said.
Known as infrared thermometers or
non-contact thermometers, the
portable handheld equipment has
the ability to measure body
temperature of in-bound and out-
bound passengers for possible
Ebola symptoms from a distance.
Hawkins, who expressed
satisfaction with the timely
response of the Nigerian
Government to the contagious
disease since its importation into
the country by a Liberian-
American, Patrick Sawyer, a month
ago, commended the measures
already put in place at the Lagos
airport.
According to Punch report,
Hawkins pointed out that the
deadly virus neither a Nigerian nor
West-African problem but a
problem to humanity as a whole.
He also applauded the Federal
Airports Authority of Nigeria
(FAAN) for providing the necessary
infrastructure for the Port Health
Services and collaborating
agencies to effectively discharge
their duties in the face of the
threat posed by the Ebola virus.
After the first case of Ebola was
reported in Nigeria which came
into the country through Sawyer
who flew in from Liberia, in-bound
and out-bound passengers
especially from West African
countries where the virus is
spreading have been undergoing
screening at the airport.
The African Union (AU)
Commission recently decided to
deploy a joint military medical
personnel and civilian
humanitarian mission to help with
the Ebola virus outbreak in parts of
West Africa.
Since the outbreak began there
have been 2,615 cases and 1,427
deaths, according to the World
Health Organisation.
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