– US death –
Thomas Eric Duncan became the first patient cared for in the United States to die of Ebola, said Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas.
Duncan passed away 10 days after he was admitted and despite receiving an experimental drug to fight off the illness.
“Mr. Duncan succumbed to an insidious disease, Ebola. He fought courageously in this battle,” said a hospital statement.
Duncan is believed to have been infected with Ebola before he left Liberia and boarded a plane to visit family in Texas.
The CDC has said there was “zero risk” that he had infected any fellow travellers because he was not symptomatic until days after the flight.
News of Duncan’s diagnosis led to a spike of suspected Ebola cases and forced governments to consider stronger methods of keeping the virus at bay.
Hours after Duncan died, the White House announced that stricter airport screenings would be implemented at five major US airports beginning Saturday.
They include sending extra CDC staff to airports and taking the temperatures of people arriving from Ebola-hit nations.
The “vast majority of people” coming from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone – the three countries hit hardest by the epidemic – will be screened, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
CDC chief Frieden said about 150 travellers come to the United States daily from the affected region, and described the screening measures as “manageable.”
President Barack Obama described the screening as “just belt-and-suspenders – it’s an added layer of protection on top of the procedures already in place.”
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