Dead Briton tested negative for Ebola
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Dead Briton tested negative for Ebola

The British man who died in Phuket after arriving from Nigeria has tested negative for Ebola, Medical Science Department director-general Apichai Mongkol said on Sunday.

Dr Apichai announced the blood test result shortly before 3pm.

The latest laboratory tests of the man's blood revealed he had not contracted the deadly virus, so there is no reason for people to panic, he said.

Health officers in protective suits inspect the dead body of a British national who is suspected of having the Ebola virus in Phuket. (EPA photo)

The British man, aged 68, who has not been identified, was found dead at a condominium in tambon Patong, Kathu district, on Oct 23. His body was kept at a state-run hospital under the Public Health Ministry's supervision for the blood tests.

He arrived in Phuket from Lagos, Nigeria, one of the countries in West Africa where Ebola is a risk, on Oct 7. The man had stayed at the condominium on Phra Baramee Road since his arrival.

On Oct 15, he fainted while walking on a beach and was taken to a local hospital, where a doctor found he had a record of heart disease.

The man was released after his symptoms were not consistent with Ebola.

Concerning an Australian man who recently arrived in Thailand from an oil drill platform in Congo, where Ebola is also a risk, and has stayed in Trat Province, the Public Health Ministry will keep him under watch for 21 days, Dr Apichai said.

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