False alarm has Petaluma firefighters suited up for Ebola call (w/video)

Petaluma firefighters donned full protective gear Sunday evening and consulted with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention after a 911 caller reported two people could be sick with Ebola at an eastern Petaluma residence - a false alarm, officials said.

The caller said two people feared they could be infected with Ebola, exhibiting symptoms such as vomiting, Petaluma Fire Chief Larry Anderson said Monday. Because of the grave nature of the 5:02 p.m. call, authorities dispatched an engine with six firefighters, along with four police officers and the county’s deputy health director, Karen Holbrook.

“We responded as if it were a serious incident,” Anderson said.

The contagious disease has killed more than 4,000 people in several African countries. One person in the United States, who was infected in Liberia, has died of the virus; two of his nurses became infected.

Outside the home, Petaluma fire officials began organizing a medical plan for handling the possible Ebola patients, Anderson said. Wearing impermeable clothing, medical goggles, gloves and masks, firefighters went into the home and spoke to the woman who’d called for help. They found she was the only person in the residence. The woman had mild flu systems but didn’t meet criteria for an Ebola infection.

Anderson said the woman did not explain why she thought she had Ebola. It’s also not clear why a second possible patient was reported.

“She may have assumed she had the potential for Ebola because she didn’t feel well,” he said. He declined to release the woman’s name or address.

She was driven to a hospital in a private vehicle for treatment for the flu.

The incident didn’t catch firefighters unprepared, he said. They had already discussed the disease, its symptoms and how to handle it with the Department of Health Services. The health department has also reached out to clinicians and other medical providers to keep them up to date on how to identify and handle the disease, Holbrook said.

On Sunday, Holbrook arrived at the house to consult with responders. The main question, she said, was if the woman or family members had traveled to one of three countries in Africa where the disease is currently spreading: Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone.

They found she had not traveled at all recently, Holbrook said.

Even though it was a false alarm, she’s glad the county had a chance to check it out.

“If someone is concerned, I would rather hear about it,” Holbrook said. If someone fears they might be infected, they should start by calling their primary care provider unless they’re seriously ill, in which case they should call 911, she said.