Ebola Hits New York City; Manhattan Doctor Craig Spencer Falls Ill After Treating Ebola Patients in West Africa
NEW YORK — New York City remained on edge late Thursday night as local and federal officials encouraged the city that never sleeps to keep calm after news broke earlier that Manhattan doctor Craig Spencer, who recently treated Ebola patients in Guinea, West Africa, had fallen ill from the virus.
"Today, testing confirmed that a patient here in New York City had tested positive for Ebola. The patient is now here in Bellevue Hospital. We want to state at the outset — there is no reason for New Yorkers to be alarmed," said Democratic New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio at a press conference Thursday.
"Ebola is an extremely hard disease to contract. It is transmitted only through contact with an infected person's blood or other bodily fluids — not through casual contact. New Yorkers who have not been exposed to an infected person's bodily fluids are not at all at risk. And we want to emphasize that New York City has the world's strongest public health system, the world's leading medical experts, and the world's most advanced medical equipment," he assured city dwellers.
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New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was also a part of the press conference, assured the city that the administration is ready for the deadly virus, which continues to ravage West Africa.
"As we learn about the first positive Ebola Case in New York City, I want to assure New Yorkers that we are prepared," said Cuomo in his remarks. "Over the past few weeks we have undertaken a thorough and coordinated effort alongside all relevant partners, from healthcare workers to the local and federal governments, in order to implement the appropriate precautions. My thoughts and prayers go out to Dr. Spencer, as well as his family and friends, and I hope for his quick recovery."
Outside Spencer's Manhattan apartment along W 147 Street late Thursday where media had camped out for the night, neighbors and passersby gawked, scoffed and expressed a mix of reactions as they discussed the doctor and his travels from Ebola stricken West Africa to the New York City subway.
"I passed him on Tuesday," Time Warner Cable contractor Timothy Brewer, who lives across the street from Spencer's apartment, told The Christian Post Thursday night. "That's called hitting home. We ain't in Africa no more," he added with a concerned look on his face.
Orlando Conce, 42, who says he has lived in the neighborhood for 12 years, said he wasn't worried although most of his neighbors are.
"I don't feel scared because I am like that. I am never scared of anything. It (Ebola) is very dangerous. Everybody is scared, but I am not scared of anything," he said.
Others who shared Spencer's building remained tight-lipped as they moved in and out while some were seen donning shades earlier in the day signaling that they did not want to be associated with the Ebola narrative.
Onlookers said after Spencer was removed from the building in a Hazmat suit earlier Thursday a worker was seen mopping the floor and wiping down the doors with some kind of disinfectant. One onlooker joked that he hoped the worker was using something stronger than "Lemon Pledge."
A statement from the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation said they started actively tracing Spencer's contacts to identify anyone who might be at risk to Ebola.
Spencer reportedly ended his work in Guinea on Oct. 12. He then flew from there two days later via Brussels, Belgium. He landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Oct. 17, but according to Dr. Mary Travis Bassett, New York City's health commissioner, he showed no symptoms of the virus until Thursday morning. The doctor, who works with Columbia Presbyterian Hospital but was working with Doctors Without Borders while he was in Guinea, had also been checking his temperature twice daily since his return and had not seen any patients.
While he hasn't seen any patients and officials say he attempted to self-quarantine since his return, officials highlighted that Spencer has been pretty active in public.
He reportedly went on a 3-mile run and engaged with friends at two bowling spots in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Wednesday. He also took the 1, A and L trains in the subway, went to the High Line, a restaurant and took an Uber cab home.
Despite these reports, however, Mayor de Blasio urged calm.
"There have been reports about the patient's movements. Again, these medical detectives are at work putting together the pieces of the timeline. But we emphasize again, Ebola is very difficult to contract. Being on the same subway car or living near a person with Ebola does not in itself put someone at risk. We are working very closely with our state and federal partners to ensure that we protect the health of all New Yorkers. People should rest assured that the extraordinary medical professionals of this city and this state are working to ensure that every protection is in place," he said.
