The first person diagnosed with Ebola in the United States ,Thomas
Eric Duncan, died Wednesday morning, the Dallas hospital where he was being
treated said. Duncan was given the experimental Ebola drug brincidofovir, but
his family said he was doing poorly and the hospital had downgraded his
condition from serious to critical. When the family visited, they declined to
view him via video link because the last time had been too upsetting.
"What we saw was very painful. It didn't look
good," Duncan's nephew Josephus Weeks. Weeks said he and Duncan's mother
were unable to sleep after seeing Duncan's face. The hospital says Duncan, 42,
is in critical condition and is sedated but stable. Duncan grew up in Liberia
but came to Dallas in late September to attend the high school graduation of
his son, Karsiah. "I'm just praying my dad will make it out safely,"
Karsiah Duncan said at a news conference Tuesday night.
Duncan may have contracted the virus in Liberia while taking
a deathly ill neighbor in Liberia to the hospital in a taxi. He left Monrovia
on a Sept. 19 flight and arrived in the U.S. the next day. He started showing
symptoms Sept. 24 and went to a Dallas hospital for treatment Sept. 26. He was
sent home, only to be brought back by ambulance on Sept. 28 and diagnosed with
the deadly virus.
"It is with profound sadness and heartfelt
disappointment that we must inform you of the death of Thomas Eric Duncan this
morning at 7:51 am," Texas Health Resources spokesman Wendell Watson said
in a statement. "We have offered the family our support and condolences at
this difficult time."
Dr. David Lakey of the Texas Department of State Health Services called the past week "an enormous test of our health system" and offered condolences to the family. "The doctors, nurses and staff at Presbyterian provided excellent and compassionate care, but Ebola is a disease that attacks the body in many ways. We’ll continue every effort to contain the spread of the virus and protect people from this threat.”
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