Ebola alert triggers heightened surveillance at Karachi airport

KARACHI: In view of the potential threat of the Ebola virus, health authorities in Sindh have intensified surveillance measures at airports, declaring passenger monitoring and rapid response mechanisms essential.

According to the Sindh Health Department, training sessions and mock exercises have been conducted for staff to improve preparedness against possible Ebola virus cases. Officials, including Dr. Waqar Memon, emphasized the need for enhanced awareness and training of healthcare personnel regarding the virus.

Dr. Syed Zafar Mehdi stressed that continuous monitoring of passengers at airports and immediate response capabilities are crucial to prevent any potential outbreak.

Authorities said that preventive measures have already been implemented at Jinnah International Airport under the provincial health department’s directives, while broader preparedness efforts have been initiated across the province.

A meeting chaired by Special Secretary Health Fawad Ghaffar Somro reviewed Ebola virus-related arrangements and directed authorities to ensure effective passenger screening, rapid response systems, and operational isolation facilities at Jinnah Airport.

Officials noted that Ebola virus has been declared a global public health emergency at the international level. They further directed that 24-hour emergency services must be ensured at the airport.

It was also decided to establish a dedicated storage facility for personal protective equipment (PPE) kits and emergency supplies. Special safety protocols have been issued for FIA and Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority staff deployed at the airport.

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On May 17, an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo killed more than 80 as authorities warned there was no vaccine for the strain in a crisis that the World Health Organization declared an international health emergency on Sunday.

A total of 88 deaths and 336 suspected cases of the highly contagious haemorrhagic fever have been reported, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC Africa) said in an update on Saturday.

The Geneva-based WHO said early on Sunday the outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola constituted a “public health emergency of international concern” — the second-highest level of alert under international health regulations.

The global health body warned the true scale of the number of cases and spread was not clear but stopped short of declaring a pandemic emergency, the highest alert level introduced in 2024.

Medical aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said it was preparing a “large-scale response”, calling the rapid spread of the outbreak “extremely concerning”, in warnings echoed by authorities.