Canada and the Bahamas announced new temporary travel restrictions on Tuesday targeting residents from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan following growing concerns over an Ebola outbreak in the region.
The Canadian government confirmed that residents from the three African nations will be barred from entering Canada for 90 days beginning Wednesday. Officials said the emergency border measure is intended to reduce the risk of Ebola entering and spreading within the country.
Meanwhile, the Bahamian government stated that its restrictions would take effect immediately and remain active for 30 days, pending further review by the nation’s health ministry. The Caribbean country will also introduce enhanced health screenings and possible quarantine requirements for travelers who recently visited the affected countries.
The World Health Organization raised the Ebola threat level on Friday, warning that the Bundibugyo strain of the virus poses a “very high” risk of becoming a national outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The WHO has declared the outbreak in both Congo and Uganda an international health emergency.
Last week, the United States introduced similar measures, restricting entry for non-citizens who recently traveled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda or South Sudan.
Canada’s public health agency added that Canadian citizens, permanent residents and certain foreign nationals arriving from affected areas without symptoms will be required to quarantine for 21 days starting May 30.
Health authorities in Canada, the Bahamas and the United States emphasized that no Ebola cases have been detected within their borders so far.
