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| Eric Duncan. |
Thomas Eric Duncan, the first person to be diagnosed with Ebola in the United States died early Wednesday, officials with Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital announced.
"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 a.m.," the hospital said in a written statement."Mr. Duncan succumbed to an insidious disease, Ebola."
Thomas Eric Duncan Liberian citizen, who recently traveled from West Africa to Dallas to reunite with a long-lost son and girlfriend, had been in isolation at Texas Health Presbyterian since Sept. 28.
Duncan’s death comes four days after his condition was downgraded from serious to critical. Over the weekend, he had begun receiving brincidofovir, an experimental antiviral drug which recently gained emergency approval from the FDA.
"He fought courageously in this battle," the hospital said. "Our professionals, the doctors and nurses in the unit, as well as the entire Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas community, are also grieving his passing. We have offered the family our support and condolences at this difficult time."
Thomas Eric Duncan, 42, is also the first person known to die of Ebola in the United States. The highly contagious virus has killed more than 3,400 people in West Africa in 2014, the World Health Organization estimates.
Many cases of Ebola keep springing up.A nurse has in Spain has been infected in the country by an Ebola patient.The nurse said she might have been infected when she touched her own face with a protective glove.There has also been a case of Ebola reported in Norway.
Five Americans who were diagnosed with Ebola in Africa have returned to the U.S. for treatment since late July. Aid workers Kent Brantly, Nancy Writebol and Rick Sacra made full recoveries. WHO said one of its doctors was transported to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta on Sept. 9. No other details have been released. Ashoka Mukpo, a cameraman working for NBC News, arrived at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha for treatment on Monday.