A flight headed for Detroit was diverted to Canada over concerns that a passenger may have been exposed to Ebola.
The Air France flight departed Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris on Wednesday “in error” with a passenger from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said.
“Due to entry restrictions put in place to reduce the risk of the Ebola virus, the passenger should not have boarded the plane,” the CBP told the Detroit Free Press.
The flight was diverted to Montreal after the CBP “took decisive action and prohibited the flight carrying that traveler from landing at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport.”
Non-U.S. passport holders from the DRC, South Sudan and Uganda are currently under a 30-day travel ban that started on May 18, three days after an outbreak of Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo virus was confirmed in northeastern DRC. Uganda has also reported imported cases from the DRC.
While South Sudan has not reported confirmed cases in the current outbreak, it is considered high-risk, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said.
“In order to assist in preventing or limiting the introduction and spread of this communicable disease into the United States, the Departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services, including CDC, and other agencies charged with protecting the homeland and the American public, are currently implementing enhanced public health measures at one U.S. airport that receives the largest number of travelers originating from the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan,” the department said.
It comes as DHS is expected to implement new restrictions on Thursday on travelers coming to the U.S. from countries at the center of the Ebola outbreak, according to CBS News.
All flights carrying passengers who have been in the DRC, South Sudan or Uganda in the past 21 days will be required to land at Washington-Dulles International Airport, according to a draft DHS rule set to be issued on Thursday.
This is a developing story. More to follow.
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