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A preliminary test conducted by the Florida Department of Health lab in Miami determined Monday that a West African teenager who became ill while visiting Miami Beach does not have the Ebola virus.
The results were to be sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta for a final test within 48 hours.
Miami-Dade, which went on high alert when the suspected case emerged over the weekend, issued a sigh of relief at the news that the teen did not have Ebola.
Sunday was a different story after the teen went to Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach with flu-like symptoms. A special team transferred him to Jackson Memorial Hospital for further tests.
Hazardous materials teams were called in. A pediatric unit of the hospital was quarantined. Streets surrounding the facility were blocked.
Gov. Rick Scott addressed the issue Sunday night.
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“It’s important to point out that this patient did not meet the CDC case definition for Ebola, but the test is being conducted out of an abundance of caution, and health officials expect the test to rule out Ebola,” Scott said.
Authorities would not give the patient’s name or say which West African country he had arrived from, or when. Jackson spokesman Edwin O’Dell said if the case turned out to be Ebola, the hospital was prepared to treat the patient.
“Jackson has been publicly forthcoming in asserting our confidence and readiness, and that we have established and tested protocols to deal with infectious diseases in general and with Ebola in specific,” he said in a statement. “We will do everything to ensure safety and treatment for all of our patients.”
Sunday’s transfer of the patient shut down access to Jackson for some visitors.
Moise Gilles, 27, of Miami was trying to see his newborn son, Nathan, in the Intensive Care Unit, but found it blocked off.
He said he saw people wearing what looked like hazardous-material suits inside.
“There were people with masks everywhere,” Gilles said.
The Miami Herald contributed to this story.
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