Ebola In US: Dallas Man Could Have Infected A Dozen People, Including 5 Children From 4 Schools [REPORT]

For months, we assumed that health officials have sufficiently contained the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. However, we reported on Tuesday that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that the first Ebola case in the U.S. has been diagnosed in Dallas, Texas.

According to reports, the unidentified male patient in his 50s arrived in Dallas from Liberia on Sept. 20. The man did not develop Ebola symptoms until Sept. 24. On Sept. 26, the man sought care at the hospital and was dismissed with antibiotics. However, the symptoms eventually became severe and the male patient was rushed to the hospital on Sept. 28. Finally, blood tests results on Sept. 30 indicate the patient is positive for Ebola. The man is currently in critical condition at the Dallas Texas Health Presbyterian under "strict isolation," according to media reports.

Based on the timeline, it took more than a week since the man arrived in Dallas before he was officially diagnosed with Ebola. What's more, since he began to experience Ebola symptoms, he was intially sent back home with antibiotics. It took four days before he was quarantined. In addition, while the man was enroute from Liberia to Dallas, he also traveled through Brussels in Belgium, stated the Liberian Ministry of Information. Health officials are investigating why doctors failed to connect the dots and implement quarantine measures sooner, given the male patient's symptoms and travel history.

According to doctors, the Ebola virus is not contagious until symptoms develop and then transmitted through bodily fluids. Thankfully, this means that the fellow passengers on the Liberia to Dallas flight are not at risk because the patient did not suffer symptoms at the time.

The man was interacting freely with other people for four full days while experiencing symptoms of the virus-- the time when Ebola is most contagious. Due to the delayed diagnosis, health officials fear that the first man with Ebola on U.S. soil could have infected up to 12 to 18 other individuals, including five children at four different schools.

Now, the CDC are desperately going door to door to reach out to every person that has come in contact with the infected man. Ambulance 37, which transported the man to the hospital, has also been isolated for investigation. Patients that were moved two days following the Ebola patient were told that the ambulance was properly sterilized following the transport. Hospital officials also announced that the ambulance crew tested negative for Ebola but will remain in their homes for the next 21 days as a precaution. According to the CDC, symptoms can appear from 2 to 21 days after Ebola exposure. Symptoms include fever, severe headache, muscle pain, wekaness, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain and hemmorrhage.