Ebola Update: 2 Americans Infected, 2nd Senior Doctor Dies

a reply to: CINY8

Brantly's family was there before the epidemic started - they were sent home after it went out of control. If you really want to get all panicky, consider this fact: Ebola reported in Megacity of 21 Million People.

a reply to: DancedWithWolves

Sorry - missed your post. Thanks for some great info.

S&

a reply to: soficrow


I'm not slandering him. I am just posting a possible scenario. I know that if I was exposed I'd want to get my family the heck out of there. He is human, after all, loves his family and would do anything to protect them.

I live here in the DFW area so I'm concerned. That's all I'm saying, girl.

a reply to: texasgirl

It really bugs me when people pick up on one isolated fact and go nuts with it without trying to learn more or even check out the basics.

There are huge numbers of Americans who visit Liberia (and Sierra Leone, Guinea, Nigeria etc.) for business, personal and charitable purposes. For example, the man Sawyer who just died of Ebola in Lagos, Nigeria was a naturalized US citizen living in Liberia who went to Nigeria for a conference.

In comparison, Brantly's family was there before the epidemic started - they were sent home after it went out of control. To get them out of harm's way. Sounds responsible to me.

If you really want to get all panicky, consider this fact: Ebola reported in Megacity of 21 Million People. The contacts are unknown and not being traced - the 35 who are known disappeared into the streets so they woul;d not be quarantined. and there's more... Much, much more dangerous -to the US and the world- than some little family sent home to safety from their charitable missionary work.

a reply to: soficrow


It really bugs me you said I slandered him. I didn't state anything as fact, just posted a possible scenario. I know the basics, okay? Did I say I was freaking out? No. Concerned, yes. The FACT is his family is here in USA and the good Dr. is now sick. I do question the timing of his illness and the arrival of the family in Texas. I will keep watching reports and my local news stories.

Lagos is a scary situation, indeed. You're right; we don't know where the others are at the moment. That is VERY concerning.

a reply to: texasgirl

I don't understand why soficrow is freaking out, I understood your post and where you are coming from, over previous years when I have heard about the ebola virus my mind goes back to that movie

Wolfie

a reply to: soficrow

I don't think it's slander to assign some humanity to him as a husband and father. I know a guy whose company helped him get home from Africa while very sick years ago. It happens and the prospect of it happening now with Ebola scares the bejeezus out of me.

I think they should halt international travel from those areas until a determined amount of time from the last reported case or as long as necessary.

originally posted by: Wolfie_UK
a reply to: texasgirl



I don't understand why soficrow is freaking out, I understood your post and where you are coming from, over previous years when I have heard about the ebola virus my mind goes back to that movie



Wolfie

Thank you, Wolfie. Posts are so easy to misunderstand.

Some news reports say Dr. Brantley is deteriorating fast, others say he is stable. Does anyone know which one is true?

a reply to: texasgirl
a reply to: Wolfie_UK
a reply to: kosmicjack

Whoa! Sorry texasgirl - did NOT mean to offend - I was responding mainly to the context and your statement " he could've infected his wife, depending on how active they are in the bedroom." ....The context meaning that everyone's been assuming the Brantly family left Africa because daddy/hubby got sick and wanted to get to the US before they were symptomatic too - and not considering the probability that they were just escaping the epidemic. My original response was:

Brantly knew there was an epidemic and it was out of control - that's ALL he needed to know to want his family on a plane and out of harm's way. ...He's a caring, responsible professional - why slander him? With no evidence whatsoever?

The facts are that numerous business concerns have lots of people posted in West Africa (including Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone) and any of them would have FAR less integrity than Brantly. I personally am much more worried about them sneaking off to hide their illness than the Brantly's - and not incidentally, MUCH more worried about the real dangers of spread in, and out of, Lagos.

originally posted by: kosmicjack
a reply to: soficrow

I don't think it's slander to assign some humanity to him as a husband and father. I know a guy whose company helped him get home from Africa while very sick years ago. It happens and the prospect of it happening now with Ebola scares the bejeezus out of me.

I think they should halt international travel from those areas until a determined amount of time from the last reported case or as long as necessary.

I don't think it was a matter of "assigning Brantly humanity as a husband and father" - that aspect of his humanity motivated him to get his family out before the epidemic really went out of control, NOT because he personally was infected. His altruism, above and beyond his humanity, was apparent in that he stayed behind because he was needed.

My fear with making assumptions (as opposed to seeking more and accurate information) is that assumptions lead to witchhunts. And witchhunts lead to injustice aka mob justice. Really scary thought, that.

As far as "halting international travel" - good luck. History and the evidence show that it doesn't work. Quarantine doesn't work. Aside from the fact that borders are "porous," and people really cannot be contained if they want to escape, viruses and bacteria tend to blow on the wind right across oceans.

Please, please read (or at least scan) the following threads:

Quarantine: A Standard Depopulation Strategy

Quarantine Until Death: The Pandemic Policy Now on Trial in the Court of Public Opinion

I don't think we will make it. We humans think we are hot sh*t, but that won't stay for long. We were lucky for a long time avoiding disasters but time is coming that will finish us off, and i think that time is coming closer and closer.

a reply to: texasgirl

Here is an article saying he is in "grave condition"

The article also explains what he was doing there before the outbreak and how he and his family chose to stay in Africa until recently - just a few days before he became ill.

Ebola Dr in Grave Condition

I feel respect for this man for risking his life to save others. Everyone knows we have to shut down airlines flying from/to Africa-Europe/US because that is how it will spread.

For the people thinking we are doomed because of the time between infection and symptoms, that's not how this one works. You are not contagious unless you are symptomatic. And even once you are showing symptoms, casual contact, etc.. won't cause this this to spread. I imagine most of the infections are because of overcrowded medical facilities, and poor work processes. An accidental stab of a needle could mean you are infected.

The medical staff is working under terrible conditions - long hours, very hot weather.. they get sloppy. One mistake and it's over. If there was going to be a disease or virus that does in the planet, it won't be one like this. With decent medical facilities and procedures, this is not a huge issue. It's too fatal too quickly, limited to specific contact, and only spreads when you are showing symptoms.

originally posted by: soficrow
I don't think it was a matter of "assigning Brantly humanity as a husband and father" - that aspect of his humanity motivated him to get his family out before the epidemic really went out of control, NOT because he personally was infected. His altruism, above and beyond his humanity, was apparent in that he stayed behind because he was needed.

That is just another possible scenario. A guess at how it went down. An ASSUMPTION. LOL Just because that is the scenario you want to assume happened, does not mean Texasgirl's scenario is wrong and definitely does not mean it's slanderous to consider his motivation.

First of all, he didn't get them out BEFORE the epidemic REALLY went out of control, if in fact they left only days before he became symptomatic (which is how it has been reported). It was out of control well before then.

There is also the possible scenario that he knew he had been exposed and hustled them out before he became contagious. I'm sure there are other scenarios.

Considering the possibilities, with regards to Dr Brantly's motivation, does not mean we are not concerned with the many, many possible people spreading it around.

a reply to: NoAngel2u

sawyer said he had no close contact with his sister when she was sick with ebola . so how did he get it?? see article below

abcnews.go.com...


also in the article sheik Humarr Khan (one of the leading drs) died today from ebola ..Dr kent brantly is gravely ill at this point
'

a reply to: NoAngel2u

I have absolutely no doubt at all there are conspiracies on top of conspiracies surrounding this epidemic - I just think they have diddly squat to do with a responsible, trained and giving doctor getting his family out of harms way. As per usual, it's all about the money - so yeah, I'd MUCH rather see people look in other directions, and poke and prod the real villains.

But hey! Round up the goon squads and get ready to dump all your aggressions - the Brantly family is just the tip of the iceberg. Of course none of the mining companies or deforestation corporations or any of the respectable capitalist ventures currently raping and pillaging West Africa are going to disclose their travel agendas - but don't worry, the missionaries and medical volunteers are open about it all and you'll have plenty of targets.

Here's a start:

Azaria Marthyman, Ebola doctor, returns home to Victoria

Dr. Azaria Marthyman, a Victoria doctor who was part of a medical group that travelled to Liberia earlier this month to treat victims of the Ebola virus has returned home, while two of his U.S. colleagues infected with the deadly virus fight for their lives.

Marthyman was part of a 14-member team sent by Christian relief agency Samaritan's Purse to provide clinical care following a renewed outbreak of Ebola in West Africa.

….Both charities (Samaritan's Purse & Serving In Mission (SIM) ) announced Tuesday that they have now ordered the evacuation of their non-essential personnel from Liberia after an upsurge in the number of Ebola cases in the country.

A statement from SIM says no symptoms of Ebola are present in any of the evacuees, who are being monitored continually.

Coon Rapids family loses husband, father to Ebola virus

Ebola, the deadly virus that has killed hundreds of people in Africa, has hit home in Minnesota, where the Liberian community and a mother of three little girls is mourning the death of one of their own.

Decontee Sawyer, 34, of Coon Rapids, learned Friday that her husband, Patrick Sawyer, 40, a Liberian government worker who travels between his Minnesota family and his West African job, died from the deadly disease. Her husband last visited his Minnesota last summer and planned to return in August.

“Everyone here knows Patrick,” Decontee Sawyer said. “So everyone feels like they’ve lost their best friend. They’ve lost their brother. And everyone is angry. It’s hit home. Ebola has been in Liberia since February, and it took Patrick being knocked down by Ebola for folks here in the U.S. to wake up to how serious it is.”

“It’s not just about the poor people who didn’t know better,” she said. “People weren’t doing what they needed to do to protect themselves or to really help the people over there. But now with Patrick, everyone knows him to be an educated man and he’s a top government official. It can happen to anyone.”

a reply to: research100

Your linked article said he died Tuesday, not today - and he wasn't really a leading doctor in the epidemic, just a latecomer leading in Sierra Leone - which is why I wrote the opening paragraph I did for this thread:

Health workers treating Ebola patients have been dropping like flies over the past 3-4 months - including 25 out of 28 nurses in a single hospital. The epidemic has spread to at least 4 countries and well over 1000 people have been infected - over 670 are dead. But now that "senior doctors" are dying and Americans are getting infected, it's news.

Also, early news reports said Sawyer did spend time with his sister in the Monrovia hospital where she died. Of note - it's only now coming out that Sawyer was a naturalized American citizen and left a family in Minnesota to mourn his passing.

As a resident of Coon Rapids I think I'm going to hibernate for awhile. Minnesota has one of the highest Liberian populations outside of Liberia and many of them are in Coon Rapids. Can't say I knew this individual who died but it's too close to home for my liking.

mind boggling thats it a federal offense to post used underwear (this cane into effect around the time of the anthrax mail scares) but a family that according to the report left Liberia just DAYS before the doctor diagnosed himself with an INCURABLE virus which can live outside the body 23 days are walking around ft worth???
Even if its not in their body what about their luggage? QUARANTINE THEIR PANTIES!!!

In the other thread I posted a link regarding a man with an illness which turned out to be TB but here is a much more worrying article.

Cobra Meeting as UK Doctors warned over Ebola