MIAMI (WSVN) -- A boy under the age of 18 who traveled to South Florida from West Africa and fell ill with flu-like symptoms has tested negative for Ebola.
On Monday morning, Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine said that a test performed on the boy by a Florida Department of Health lab came back negative for Ebola. He added that another sample is being sent to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta for confirmation.
Though it was a huge scare from Miami Beach to Miami, officials called it a good dry run. "Thank God it was negative," said Levine during a news conference on Monday. "Of course, as you know, that the greater verification at the CDC in the next two or three days."
The boy was admitted to Mount Sinai Medical Center, Sunday around 3 a.m., then transferred to Holtz Children's Hospital in Miami around 14 hours later. Doctors at both hospitals said they took every necessary safety precaution.
According to a source, the child was reportedly visiting South Florida and was in the area for some time. The source added that it was unlikely the child's illness was Ebola.
Around 3:30 p.m., at Miami Beach Fire Station No. 2, crews in Hazmat suits covered an ambulance with plastic in order to transport the child to the emergency room at Holtz Children's Hospital, located near Jackson Memorial Hospital. "We suited up for a worst-case scenario," said Miami Beach Fire Rescue Chief Virgil Hernandez.
Crews said, in the hour leading to the child's transport, authorities and officials were spotted gearing up in Hazmat suits and surgical face masks to prepare for the patient's arrival, which took place around 5 p.m. "We look at everything being a potential danger," said Fernandez, "so we wanted to make sure to, not only did we keep the patient's well-being, the community's well-being, but also our first responders and the hospital personnel's well-being in mind."
The emergency room entrance was even blocked off by several police officers from several agencies, as the boy arrived. Miami Fire Rescue Capt. Ignatius Carroll said, "Working with our law enforcement, they cordoned off an area to make it safe for the patients, or the surrounding area for bystanders, as well as allowing rescuers to get in and do what they need to do."
Immediately after he was admitted, health officials mopped up the floor. "If there were to be anything above and beyond a general sickness, we needed to be able to protect our residents and our tourists, and all the teams worked well together to make sure they were in place," Levine said.
Jackson Health System spokesperson Edwin O'Dell released a statement which read, "Jackson has been publicly forthcoming in asserting our confidence and readiness, and that we have established and tested protocols to deal with infectious diseases in general and with Ebola in specific. We will do everything to ensure safety and treatment for all of our patients. Jackson takes patient privacy seriously and will not release information without consent."
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