Ebola alert: travelers under surveillance

Contrary to widespread public fears that Malawi is not vigilant on preventing Ebola, the country seems to be making efforts to prevent the deadly outbreak spreading in the country.

Currently, the epidemic has torn apart West African region with several cases reported in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and lately, Nigeria, where over 1 000 lives have been lost.

Officials at Kamuzu International Airport (KIA) said on Thursday this week health officials are checking all travellers arriving in the country for not only Ebola symptoms, but also warning signs of other ailments.

The airport is also renovating its quarantine facility located about a kilometre away from the main airport building. The quarantine, built in 1978, comprises three rooms with more than six beds, a kitchen and a lounge, among other facilities.

KIA health port supervisor, Emison Kuntamba, said his team is recording every visitor or resident entering Malawi with a keen interest on those travelling from the Ebola hit region.

Kuntamba added that although Malawi is not yet on the WHO official international travel ban list, KIA is ready to detect any passengers with Ebola symptoms.

“The threat of Ebola is real and my office is undertaking necessary precautions to prevent any occurrence. We are not taking chances; we just can’t.”

“Meanwhile, we are conducting tests [primarily using an infra-red thermometer. The system has a a follow-up mechanism just in case we miss the signs here,” he said.

According to Kuntamba, the records from the airport are being faxed to the Lilongwe District Health Office for further action.

Unlike other Sadc countries, such as South Africa and Zambia, which have banned immigrants from the Ebola hit countries, Malawi continues to receive visitors from the region.

As of Thursday afternoon, immigration records indicated that about 80 passengers flew from the region; most of them from Nigeria where they had gone on religious tours.

Kuntamba said Malawi is not at risk because most of the people flying into the country pass through Nairobi and South Africa where Ebola screaming is also taking place.

One of the passengers who jetted into the country from Nigeria on Thursday, Elia Kamphinda Banda, said he had undergone screening at point of departure and even at flight connections points.

Said Banda: “I have undergone screening in Nigeria and Nairobi respectively.”

Meanwhile, the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) Malawi has announced that it is supporting the Ministry of Health to prepare for the Ebola outbreak.

“CDC Malawi staff, in partnership with the World Health Organisation and Médecins Sans Frontières, is assisting the Ministry of Health to prepare for and respond to Ebola Virus Disease from West Africa, in the unlikely event of its spread to Malawi,” reads part of the statement on the online USA Embassy Malawi page.

According to CDC website, Malawi staff are tracking data on the West Africa outbreak, collaborating with the Ministry on case definitions and preparedness plans, and are developing protocols.

CDC is a global resource in epidemic response and has a long history of assisting with Ebola outbreaks in East Africa.