Olufemi Atoyebi, Eniola Akinkuotu, Maureen Ihua-Maduenyi, Okechukwu Nnodim, Dayo Ojerinde and Daud Olatunji The Federal Government on Monday vowed to deal with any foreign airline that violated coron
avirus screening procedures for passengers arriving in the country.
The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, while briefing journalists in Abuja, said some passengers, who were on the same Turkish Airlines flight with the first index case, an Italian businessman, gave telephone numbers that were not working. The Italian is currently in the isolation centre at the Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba, Lagos. Also, no fewer than 100 persons, who had contacts with him, have been identified by the Lagos and Ogun state governments.
According to the source, all airlines must give screening forms to their passengers, irrespective of the status of such passengers. Explaining efforts to trace those who had contacts with the index case, the Minister of Health, Ehanire, said, “The airline that brought the index patient has been notified and has been advised to put the crew that came with the flight on observation.”
He said there was no new coronavirus case in the country apart from the Italian being treated in Lagos. The PUNCH on Monday reported that there was no functional isolation centre at the Abuja hospital despite the Federal Government’s claim that the hospital had been designated to house an isolation centre.
“There were 156 passengers on the manifest of the flight that brought the index case. Port Health Services and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control have been supporting Ogun and Lagos state governments to carry out contact tracing and other response activities.“Contact with the index case is currently identified as 19 in Lagos State and 39 in Ogun State. We are in touch with these contacts who are under supervised self-isolation and the states are providing them with temperature monitoring tools.
On the actual amount needed to combat the virus, the minister said there was no fixed budget and that effort would be provided as event unfolded. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where several foreign nationals were seen when The PUNCH visited, the story was the same. He said, “It is no more news that we are managing a case in Lagos, but the situation does not call for panic. One of the lessons we learnt during the outbreak of Ebola virus six years ago is that, the grassroots were adequately sensitised and prepared.
The PUNCH, on Monday, gathered that the medical personnel, described as surge staff would be trained and put on a roster at the airport’s screening point. According to the account given by both officials of FMC, the five Chinese wore face masks and visited the hospital and went straight to a private ward.One of the sources stated, “They said they have a colleague at home that sneezes and coughs. They came to make an enquiry on how to bring him to the hospital for treatment.“But, because there is no facility they could not take in, they just referred them to Yaba hospital, Lagos.
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