Hospitals

Ebola Watch: Bandits stole potentially infected blood samples in Guinea holdup

Bandits in Guinea held up a minibus taxi and stole a cooler of blood samples […]

Bandits in Guinea held up a minibus taxi and stole a cooler of blood samples from a suspected Ebola patient as they were being transported to a test site in Gueckedou, officials said Friday. The samples are believed to contain the virus. Currently it is unclear why the roadside robbery took place or what the thieves’ motive was, but it has brought to light the need for tighter security.

“We have informed the security services. If these thieves handle this blood, it will be dangerous,” Dr. Barry Moumie, who heads patient care for the national Ebola response coordination committee, told The Associated Press. “I can assure you, however, that the sample-transportation procedures will now be strengthened to avoid such disappointments.”

Though, yes, it isn’t clear why the bandits took the blood samples, in the midst of the outbreak, this is pretty terrifying. Surely more news about this will surface in the near future.

Other news:

Patients in NYC and Missouri have both tested negative for the virus: A traveler who returned to the United States from a trip to Mali does not have the disease but remains in isolation at Bellevue Hospital Center for further testing. Initial tests for the Ebola virus were negative as well in Crystal City, Missouri, for a patient who recently returned from West Africa.

Ebola prevention and treatment products are the more recent stock scam: The Securities and Exchange Commission said on Thursday it had suspended trading in over-the-counter stocks of New York-based Bravo Enterprises Ltd, California-based Immunotech Laboratories Inc and Wholehealth Products Inc, as well as Canada-based Myriad Interactive Media Inc.

[Photo from flickr user Jomilo75]

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