MOSCOW, January 16 (Sputnik) — Sierra Leone's Lungi International Airport has tested disease-screening measures after a case of Ebola contagion was confirmed among its workers, raising fears about the spread of outbreak using air-transport networks, the Geneva-based International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Friday.
IOM staged six consecutive scenarios to test the operation of the airport's security and health agencies, aimed at preventing contagion from being passed between staff and travellers. To add reality to the exercise, IOM recruited five Ebola survivors to play the part of disease victims.
"In health emergencies, the greatest challenge is swiftly organizing the medical professionals to assume command and control of the situation… The emergency simulation exercise provides the perfect environment to rehearse and refine these skills," IOM health and humanitarian border management officer Ben Potter said.
Screenings and security controls have been tightened at the airport after the Western African country reported an increase in Ebola cases in the area close to it. Sierra Leone is the worst-hit country in the current Ebola outbreak, with more than 10,000 cases and over 3,000 deaths confirmed by the World Health Organization.
