Suspected Ebola death was malaria
The lodge was barricaded by the police from that time until shortly after 3pm, when health department officials confirmed that the man did not die from Ebola.
“A man who died at a lodge on Yeo Street in Yeoville on Monday did not have Ebola,” said Mr Joe Maila, the spokesperson for the National Health Department.
This follows the death of a man who had recently arrived from Nigeria.
Officials from the lodge, who asked not to be mentioned, said the man arrived from Nigeria at about 10pm.
“He was sweating and he looked dizzy. We tried to help him but at around 12am he died. The emergency officials who were at the scene said there were suspicions of Ebola. They did not want to take any chances so we had to wait for their seniors to confirm,” the lodge official said.
The lodge was barricaded by the police from that time until shortly after 3pm, when health department officials confirmed that the man did not die from Ebola.
“The man did not die from Ebola but he tested positive for malaria,” said Mr Maila.
When asked about the time taken to confirm the diagnosis, he said there was nothing untoward about it.
“When we were notified about the possibility of Ebola, we sent our teams. We took the samples to the lab. We had to confirm and we could not rush things and risk a mistake. After we confirmed the diagnosis, we then made a pronouncement. If he had tested positive for Ebola, we would follow the correct process and trace those who needed to be traced. We cannot rush to make a pronouncement in cases like these,” he said.
