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Soldier Found Dead In Killeen Following Return From West Africa

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KILLEEN (CBSDFW.COM) -- A Fort Hood soldier who had recently returned from West Africa has been found dead outside of his Killeen apartment.

The 24-year-old had been deployed to help build a hospital to contain Ebola, but officials say he had no contact with the virus.

While there are no initial indications that the man had any symptoms, he was under established guidelines to self-monitor himself twice-a-day and report his status to medical officials.

His body is being brought to Dallas for an autopsy.

Carol Smith with the Killeen Police Department says first responders were notified upon arrival that the man had recently returned from Liberia.

"Because he was deceased and because we didn't know his cause of death, we contacted our hazmat team and we used precautionary measures," said Smith.

Tyler Broadway with Fort Hood says officials have not evacuated the building where the man lived.

"We don't have an indication of Ebola, but medical tests are underway to ensure there is no threat to the community," said Broadway.

Two tests need to be completed to exclude the presence of the Ebola virus.  Both test results were negative for the disease.

The unidentified soldier had recently returned on emergency leave for a family emergency.

Fort Hood officials are working closely with Killeen Police to investigate the incident.

(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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