Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola index patient has been evacuated from the country by air ambulance early Monday morning.
The patient, a 42-year-old woman said to be the wife of a Swiss diplomat in Nigeria, was reportedly flown out through the private jet wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
Sources said she was transported to the airport in a convoy of ambulances and diplomatic vehicles before being transferred to a medical evacuation aircraft.
Private Jet Wing Cordoned Off
Airport officials were said to have cordoned off the private jet wing during the sensitive operation, as the medical aircraft and its crew prepared for take-off.
A video circulating on social media shows officials lifting the patient, enclosed in what appears to be a patient isolation unit, onto a stretcher and into the aircraft ahead of departure.
A source familiar with the evacuation said the Federal Government was expected to announce the development after the aircraft had taken off and left Nigerian airspace.
Destination Still Unknown
Officials had not officially confirmed the circumstances surrounding the evacuation or the patient’s destination at the time of filing this report.
The evacuation comes amid heightened surveillance across the country following confirmation of the Ebola case, with health authorities urging calm and adherence to preventive measures.
The Federal Government and health agencies are yet to issue an official statement on the reported airlift.
The development has triggered fresh concerns over public health safety and the handling of the index case, as Nigerians await official confirmation and details of the evacuation.
