No Ebola Case In Lagos, Govt Says As It Tightens Surveillance At Airport

The Lagos State Government has said no case of Ebola Virus Disease has been recorded in the state, but it is tightening surveillance and preparedness at entry points, including the Murtala Muhammed International Airport.

The Ministry of Health said through the Directorate of Epidemiology, Biosecurity and Global Health, it is strengthening disease surveillance, risk communication and community engagement in collaboration with agencies at points of entry.

As part of the measures, the state said it conducted a strategic engagement and assessment at the MMIA with airport management, Port Health Services and other aviation and public health stakeholders.

According to the ministry, the engagement focused on passenger screening, information sharing, infection prevention and control, and coordination of emergency response.

It added that it is also intensifying public enlightenment on Ebola, its symptoms, transmission and prevention.

Ebola, the ministry noted, is a severe illness that can be fatal and spreads primarily through direct contact with the blood and other body fluids of a symptomatic infected person, contaminated materials, or bodies of persons who died from the disease. It can also spread through contact with infected animals.

Symptoms, it said, may appear between two and 21 days after exposure and include fever, severe weakness, headache, muscle pain, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain, with unexplained bleeding or bruising in some cases.

The ministry said early symptoms can resemble malaria and other common illnesses, advising residents who become unwell, particularly after possible exposure or travel from an area with active transmission, to seek prompt medical assessment.

It also reminded residents of the state’s fever-management policy, which requires a malaria rapid diagnostic test before taking antimalarial medicines, and where negative, further assessment by a health professional.

Residents were advised to wash hands regularly, avoid contact with body fluids of sick persons, avoid handling potentially contaminated materials and avoid contact with sick or dead wild animals.

For travellers, the government urged those arriving in Nigeria, particularly from areas reporting Ebola transmission, to cooperate with Port Health Services, provide accurate travel and health information and comply with public health guidance.

It said anyone who develops symptoms during travel or after arrival should promptly notify health personnel and seek guidance before visiting a health facility, while airlines and airport operators are expected to sustain established public health protocols.

The ministry advised travellers to rely on official advisories from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria.

It said anyone who suspects exposure, especially following contact with a suspected or confirmed case, should contact public health authorities for guidance before visiting a facility.

Suspected cases or exposure concerns in Lagos can be reported via the state emergency numbers 112 or 767, or to the Directorate of Epidemiology, Biosecurity and Global Health on 0802 316 9485.