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An Air France flight from Paris to Detroit was diverted to Montreal Wednesday afternoon after United States authorities barred it from entering the U.S., citing new restrictions for people who who have recently travelled to three East Africa countries, where a deadly Ebola outbreak has taken hold.
A passenger disembarked at Pierre Elliot Trudeau International Airport, was assessed by a quarantine officer, and flew back to Paris, said Mark Johnson, a spokesperson for the Public Health Agency of Canada, in a statement.
Health officials determined the passenger was asymptomatic, Johnson added. The U.S.-bound plane then continued on to Detroit.
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In a statement, Air France said the plane diverted to Montreal at the request of U.S. authorities after a Congolese national on board was denied entry into the United States.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda one of international concern. The WHO says there are about 600 suspected cases and at least 139 suspected deaths from the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. The outbreak was first confirmed by health authorities in those regions on Friday.
The United States has said it will increase screening for people arriving from affected regions and also restrict people with non-U.S. passports from entering the country if they have been in Uganda, Congo or South Sudan in the past 21 days.
U.S. authorities say the passenger on the Air France flight Wednesday was from the Congo and said the airline boarded the passenger in error.
“The passenger should not have boarded the plane,” U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a written statement.
“CBP took decisive action and prohibited the flight carrying that traveler from landing at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, and instead, diverted to Montreal,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, the White House angrily denied a report that it resisted the transport of American citizen Peter Stafford, a doctor, back to the U.S. for treatment.
The Washington Post’s report was based on interviews with a Centers for Disease Control official and another individual familiar with the situation, who each spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the response.
White House officials told the Post that the priority was rapid treatment for Stafford, and that the Charite Hospital in Germany where Stafford is being treated is recognized as one of the best facilities in the world for treating and containing the Ebola virus.
