Passenger who sparked plane diversion to Montreal does not have Ebola symptoms, Canadian officials say
Canadian and Michigan officials say any actions related to an international flight diverted to Detroit due to an Ebola-related travel restriction are being handled at the federal level in the U.S.
However, the passenger whose flight plans sparked the incident has no symptoms of the disease, the Public Health Agency of Canada said Thursday. The individual has since returned to Paris.
Air France Flight 378 from Paris to Detroit was ordered mid-flight on Wednesday to divert to Montreal and drop off a passenger due to U.S. flight restrictions linked to the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa. The reason, according to federal officials and the airline, is that one of the passengers was from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The World Health Organization has declared an Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda to be a global health emergency.
The Department of Homeland Security recently required all U.S.-bound flights carrying travelers who have been in Congo, Uganda or South Sudan in the previous 21 days to fly only into Washington-Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
With those rules in effect, the flight diverted to let the passenger in question get off the plane in Montreal. Those on board learned of the change mid-flight, according to a Michigan woman who was among the passengers that day.
"There was no medical emergency on board, and like all airlines, Air France is required to comply with the entry requirements of the countries it serves," the airline said on Thursday.
"All actions related to the diverted airplane are being handled at the federal level," the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services told CBS Detroit on Thursday.
"To help prevent Ebola virus disease from entering the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have implemented enhanced travel screening, entry restrictions and public health measures amid ongoing outbreaks in East and Central Africa. According to the CDC, the risk to the public and travelers remains low."