Ebola patient evacuated by RAF to Britain not ‘seriously unwell’

A British healthcare worker who tested positive for ebola in Sierra Leone is being evacuated to the UK on a Royal Air Force jet, the Department of Health has said.

The man, who is not “seriously unwell”, is being taken to RAF Northolt in west London.

He will then be transported to the UK’s only high-level isolation unit at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead in north London.

It is the first confirmed case of a Briton contracting the deadly virus during the recent outbreak. The identity of the patient — who lived in Sierra Leone — has not been disclosed.

There is no cure to ebola and outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90%.

Health chiefs insisted the risk to the British public from ebola is “very low”.

The infected patient’s bed will be surrounded by a specially-designed tent with its own controlled ventilation system. Only specially-trained medical staff are allowed inside the unit.

A spokesman for the Department of Health said: “The patient is not currently seriously unwell and is being medically evacuated in a specially equipped C17 Royal Air Force plane to RAF Northolt in the UK.

“Upon arrival in the UK the patient will be transported to an isolation unit at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.”

Professor John Watson, deputy chief medical officer, insisted “the overall risk to the public in the UK remains very low”.

He said: “We have robust, well-developed and well-tested NHS systems for managing unusual infectious diseases when they arise, supported by a wide range of experts.

“UK hospitals have a proven record of dealing with imported infectious diseases and this patient will be isolated and will receive the best care possible.”

Dr Paul Cosford, director for health protection at Public Health England, said protective measures would be strictly maintained to avoid the virus being transmitted to staff transporting the patient and healthcare workers in the UK. He added: “For ebola to be transmitted from one person to another contact with blood or other body fluids is needed and as such, the risk to the general population remains very low.”

The World Health Organisation has put the numbers infected with the deadly virus at 2,615. Some 1,427 to date have died from the disease.