Following a break out of the deadly Ebola virus in the central Ugandan district of Mubende, the United States, one of the countries to which Ugandans fly, has moved forward on redirecting travelers from Uganda to five U.S. airports to screen them for the Ebola virus and will follow up with them while they are in the country.
The directive intends to screen in bound travelers to the US from Uganda for Ebola, if they have traveled in the country within three weeks prior to their arrival in the US.
As communicated, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will conduct a temperature check and risk assessment on anyone who has been in Uganda over the previous 21 days, the incubation time of the deadly Ebola virus. State and local public health officials will follow up with them for 21 days after their arrival, the official said.
The airports are: JFK International Airport in New York, Washington Dulles International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport, Chicago O’Hare International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
Most of the 145 people who arrive from Uganda each day already land at those airports. There are no direct flights from Uganda, where the outbreak began last month, to the United States.
“Travelers who have spent any time in Uganda over the previous 21 days, the incubation period for the virus, will be directed to JFK International Airport in New York, Washington-Dulles International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, Chicago-O’Hare International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport,” the US Embassy in Kampala tweeted.
“Out of an abundance of caution, the (US) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will apply new layers of screening at these five US airports in response to the Ebola outbreak in Uganda,” the embassy added.
The outbreak appeared limited to five districts in central Uganda and had not reached the capital or the travel hub Entebbe. The current outbreak has been attributed to the Sudan strain of the Ebola virus, which has no proven vaccine.
The UN’s health agency announced that several vaccines are in various stages of development against the Ebola outbreak in Uganda, adding that the vaccines used to curb recent outbreaks in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo were not effective against the type of Ebola virus circulating in Uganda.
About Guide2Uganda
Guide2Uganda (www.guide2uganda.ug) is the most comprehensive source of travel information about Uganda that exists on the web, with more content on its cities & towns, accommodation, attractions, events, museums and galleries than any other online guide that currently exists for Uganda; as well as being a dynamic travel news and events driven site with fresh content added daily.
According to WeFollow & Peer Index (that measure online influence), we are among the most influential online media organizations in Uganda. Guide2Uganda was also awarded ‘’Best Destination Website in Uganda’’ by Jumia Travel Uganda in the 2018 Africa Travel Awards.
Share your travel stories & photos with the world via email: info@guide2uganda.ug
