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AFP Photo / Zoom Dosso
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An unidentified US Army soldier in
Texas who was self-monitoring for Ebola was found dead on Tuesday. He had just
returned from West Africa, and was found in Killeen near Fort Hood, where he
was posted, base officials said.
"At this point,
there is no indication of the Ebola virus disease, but medical tests are under
way to ensure there is no threat to the community," Army officials said in a statement, according to RT.com.
The soldier was found in the yard of
an apartment complex. Killeen police, A HAZMAT team and several ambulances
responded to the scene. They have sealed off the neighborhood and blocked the
body from view, KWTX reported.
Carrie Williams, director of media
relations for the Texas Department of State Health Services, told CBS News that
the soldier was in Liberia during deployment.
"We are
aware of the situation. Testing will occur. The risk is considered to be very
low," Williams said.
The soldier was one of 87 troops who
had returned to central Texas’ Fort Hood on Wednesday after serving in Liberia
since October. He was granted emergency leave from the 21-day Ebola quarantine
for family reasons, the Army Times reported. The man was monitoring himself
twice daily and reporting his status to medical officials, Army officials said,
according to Reuters.
The US Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention notes that there have been four cases of Ebola diagnosed in the
United States. The first was Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan, who was
treated at Texas Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas. He infected two nurses, Nina
Pham and Amber Vinson. The fourth was Dr. Craig Spencer, who was diagnosed in
New York City after returning from Guinea. Duncan is the only patient to have
died from the virus.
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