There was panic at the Harare International Airport on Wednesday among passengers aboard a Fastjet Airways flight which had just landed.
The pandemonium was caused by a suspected case of Ebola. A male Zimbabwean passenger who was returning from Lumbumbashi, DRC suddenly fell ill on the plane.
The man was complaining of a headache and body weakness, symptoms synonymous with the deadly Ebola virus.
However, the director of epidemiology and disease control at the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Portia Manangazira has quieted those fears. She said:
Actually, by the time he arrived at the hospital his temperature had lowered. We are not worried, tests were conducted and correct procedures followed.
There is no need to panic. Actually, it showed that our surveillance system is functional.
This was corroborated by Harare city health director, Prosper Chonzi who said:
He was just complaining of a headache. It could be anything. The symptoms are not typically those of Ebola. He has no fever, there was no bleeding anywhere on his body and his temperature is normal.
The patient flew in from South Africa after he had been to Lubumbashi where he left his delivery truck. Lubumbashi has no known cases of Ebola, but the northern cities.
More: Newsday