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ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews/17 February) – Four residents who were with the flight that carried the Filipina nurse who tested positive of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Corona Virus (MERS-CoV) have been placed on home quarantine, City Health Officer Dr. Rodelin Agbulos announced Monday.
The Filipina nurse arrived in the country aboard Saudi Flight 860 last February 1 from Saudi Arabia. The plane was carrying over 200 passengers.
Agbulos said the four are among the five residents of this city that were together with the nurse who arrived in the country aboard Saudi Flight 860.
He identified them as two males aged 28 and two females aged 32 and 41, adding they were located through contact tracing.
He said they have taken swab samples of the four which were sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine of the Department of Health for laboratory analysis.
Agbulos said the results of the laboratory analysis are expected to be released on Thursday, February 19.
“We were able to trace the (whereabouts of the) four. They are with their families and we advised them home quarantine for the moment until the results arrive,” he said.
He said the four were asymptomatic, which means they did not show any symptoms of MERS-CoV.
The signs and symptoms of MERS-CoV, which is a viral illness, include cough, fever, shortness of breath and diarrhea.
MERS-CoV was first reported in 2012 in Saudi Arabia. (MindaNews)