In late December a technician at the U.S. CDC may have been exposed to the deadly Ebola virus from West Africa. This happened when samples that may have contained live virus were sent from a high-security lab to one that was not equipped to handle live Ebola.
What happened consequently was that the technician who worked in the recipient lab was exposed to the incorrect samples. The technician would not have worn special protection clothing, simply a laboratory coat, gloves and a gown. For handling viruses of a high biohazard, like Ebola, a face shield is mandatory. According to The New York Times the mistake was discovered the next day and attributed to human error. The incident was reported by Stuart Nichol, chief of the CDC’s Viral Special Pathogens Branch.
Commenting on the incident, Najmedin Meshkati of the University of Southern California told the Times: “I am speechless. This is yet another indication that this organization needs to do a serious soul searching to improve its safety culture.”
The technician who appears to have been exposed to Ebola is being monitored over a 21 day period. According to The Washington Post, other employees who entered the lab that received the incorrect samples are unlikely to have been exposed, the agency said, and there is no risk to the public as the samples never left the CDC campus in Atlanta.
The safety breach comes at the end of a troubling year for the CDC, as Digital Journal has reported.
In June 2014, up to 75 CDC scientists were exposed to Bacillus anthracis when live samples were shipped to ill-equipped laboratories. Later, in July a mix-up of benign avian influenza virus with the highly pathogenic H5N1 occurred in a shipment from the CDC’s influenza lab to a Department of Agriculture facility. An internal report by the CDC suggests that the researcher responsible for the contamination of a relatively benign H9N2 bird flu strain with the deadly H5N1 was overworked and in a rush to attend a lab meeting.
