Thomas Eric Duncan was admitted at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas on September 28, died on October 8

Oct 9, 2014 06:44 GMT  ·  By

A statement issued by Texas Health Resources this past October 8 says that, earlier that day, US' first Ebola patient had passed away while in intensive care.

The man, identified as Thomas Eric Duncan, died at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, where he was admitted and put in isolation on September 28.

“It is with profound sadness and heartfelt disappointment that we must inform you of the death of Thomas Eric Duncan this morning at 7:51 a.m. Mr. Duncan succumbed to an insidious disease, Ebola,” Texas Health Resources' statement reads.

Furthermore, “He fought courageously in this battle. Our professionals, the doctors and nurses in the unit, as well as the entire Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas community, are also grieving his passing.”

The first Ebola patient in the US

The 42-year-old man is understood to have contracted Ebola while in Liberia, where he worked as a driver at a cargo company based in Monrovia, the country's capital city, Live Science informs.

More precisely, Thomas Eric Duncan is believed to have been exposed to the deadly virus when helping a pregnant woman suffering from this disease to seek medical health. Both this woman and her brother are now dead.

The 42-year-old started developing Ebola symptoms on September 24, shortly after arriving in Texas. He first sought medical help on September 26 but was sent home by a nurse. It was only two days later that he was admitted and put in isolation.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention carried out a series of tests, and on September 30, it announced that this patient was in fact suffering from Ebola. Despite the fact that he received the best medical care possible, the man eventually passed away.

Keeping the disease from spreading

Following the death of 42-year-old Thomas Eric Duncan at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that it would implement enhanced Ebola screening at five of the country's airports.

These airports are said to receive about 94% of the people arriving in the US from West Africa, where the Ebola virus has until now killed thousands of people and infected many more.

“New York's JFK International Airport will begin the new screening on Saturday. The enhanced entry screening at Washington-Dulles, Newark, Chicago-O'Hare, and Atlanta international airports will be implemented next week,” the Centers explains.

What health officials mean when they say that enhanced Ebola screening is to be implemented at New York's JFK, Washington-Dulles, Newark, Chicago-O'Hare, and Atlanta is that additional staff will be dispatched to all of these airports.

The additional staff will be in charge of assessing the overall health condition of travelers from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. If any of these travelers shows symptoms associated with Ebola, they will be quarantined.

Commenting on the decision to begin enhanced Ebola screening at these airports, CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H., said, “We believe these new measures will further protect the health of Americans, understanding that nothing we can do will get us to absolute zero risk until we end the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.”