'The CDC is lying to us!': Doctor checks in at Atlanta airport in full protective gear to protest against disease center's handling of Ebola outbreak
- Gil Mobley said he was not interrogated before Guatemala to Atlanta flight
- Told passers-by at Atlanta Airport the CDC is 'asleep at the wheel'
- Protest comes as Hawaii patient is isolated with suspected Ebola
- Two days ago a man in Texas became first to be diagnosed in US hospital
- Up to 100 people had contact with Texas Ebola patient, it is estimated
A doctor checked in at Atlanta airport in protective goggles, gloves, boots and overalls in a bitter protest at the CDC for 'sugar-coating' the true scale of Ebola in the US.
Gil Mobley said he was left horrified yesterday when he was allowed to fly from Guatemala to Atlanta with no interrogation or checks on his equipment.
Enraged, the microbiologist and emergency trauma physician boarded his next flight from Atlanta International Airport - minutes from the center's headquarters - wearing a protective white jumpsuit branded with the words 'CDC is lying!'
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Protest: Dr Gil Mobley wore protective gear warning passers-by the CDC is 'sugar-coating' the threat of Ebola
It comes two days after a man in Texas became the first person to be diagnosed with Ebola in an American hospital.
And today it emerged a patient in Honolulu, Hawaii, has been placed in isolation with suspected Ebola.
Blasting the CDC for doing nothing to stop the spread, Mobley called on airports and passengers to take their own action instead of waiting for official guidance.
'Yesterday, I came through international customs at the airport,' he told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 'The only question they asked arriving passengers is if they had tobacco or alcohol.'
'The CDC is asleep at the wheel,' Mobley said. '...It's going to be bad, and I want to make sure that this conversation is happening that this could get out of control in the United States.'
Anger: He said he was allowed to fly from Guatemala to Atlanta with no checks on his equipment or questions
Advise: Dr Mobley warns the US will have to deal with a serious case of Ebola very soon and we're not ready
'With 10,000 people flying out if west Africa daily its only a matter of time until all corners of the world are exposed,' Mobley said.
'Once it devours third world countries, the US will be importing these cases daily. Eventually the clusters will overwhelm even the most advanced countries' ability to isolate and quarantine all those exposed.
'The CDC needs to be honest with us.'
A CDC spokesman rebuffed the protest, claiming there was no risk that needed to be investigated.
Action: Mobley, a microbiologist, urged airports to join the conversation rather than wait for official guidance
Prediction: Mobley, an emergency trauma physician, said he believes the US will be importing cases daily
'There were no signs of any disease when the gentleman boarded the flight,' said Dr. Tom Kenyon, director of the CDC's Center for Global Health.
'This was not a failure of the screening process at the airport.'
Up to 100 people were in contact with the Dallas Ebola patient at some point, Texas health officials said today, marking a significant jump from the 18 people that authorities had said may have been exposed to the deadly virus.
Infected: This is Thomas Eric Duncan, right, who became the first patient to be diagnosed with Ebola in the US
Route: He traveled from Liberia to Belgium, then on to Washington where he switched on to a Dallas flight
Four members of 42-year-old Thomas Eric Duncan's family have been legally ordered to stay home as a precaution even though they are not showing symptoms, the Texas Department of State Health Services said in a statement on Thursday. Violating the order could result in criminal charges.
The health officials said around 100 people may have come into contact with Mr Duncan. Earlier, they had put the figure at up to 18, including five children.
Some parents have temporarily removed their children from Dallas schools after learning that the five students may have come into contact with the first person to be diagnosed with Ebola in the U.S.
Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2778298/The
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