NEW YORK (AP) — Officials in New York City are trying to tamp down fears of Ebola, after a doctor was diagnosed with the disease. But some New Yorkers aren’t taking any chances.
A group of teenage girls riding the L subway train this morning passed around a bottle of hand sanitizer. They said they were taking extra precautions because of the Ebola case. It was one of the subway lines that Dr. Craig Spencer rode after returning home from Africa.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this morning on CNN that there’s no reason to fear riding the subway, and that he would be doing so today. But one commuter said riding the subway is “a scary thing.” Chris Thompson, who was also on the L train, said that there are “a lot of germs in New York.”
Another subway rider said that if Ebola outbreaks become more common, he’ll be “moving out of the city.”
But another rider said she believes the mayor and governor, and that “there’s no need for hysteria.”
And a woman who lives in Spencer’s building was matter-of-fact about the whole thing. She said, “He’s the one with Ebola,” and added, “If I get it, I get it.”
Health officials have been tracing Spencer’s contacts to identify anyone who may be at risk.
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014-w-38-(Jackie Quinn, AP correspondent, with Governor Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., and Dr. Mary Travis Bassett, commissioner, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene)–New York City health officials are urging calm, now that a doctor just returning from West Africa has tested positive for Ebola. AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports. (24 Oct 2014)
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122-a-09-(Governor Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., in interview)-“it should happen”-New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says he’s pleased with how New York health care workers responded to their first case of Ebola. COURTESY: NBC’s “Today” show ((mandatory on-air credit)) (24 Oct 2014)
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124-a-14-(Governor Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., in interview)-“health care workers”-New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says New York City was prepared for its first encounter with Ebola. COURTESY: NBC’s “Today” show ((mandatory on-air credit)) (24 Oct 2014)
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APPHOTO NYML102: People walk through the lobby of Bellevue Hospital, Friday, Oct. 24, 2014, in New York. Dr. Craig Spencer, a resident of New York City and a member of Doctors Without Borders, was admitted to Bellevue on Thursday and has been diagnosed with Ebola. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) (24 Oct 2014)
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