Bottle of ‘blood’ labelled ‘Ebola’ sparks panic in Majorca after being left outside block of flats by pranksters
A BOTTLE of “blood” labelled “Ebola” sparked panic in Majorca yesterday after being left at the entrance to a block of flats by pranksters.
An emergency alert was activated at around 8pm after the container of dark red liquid was found at the apartment block in the Palma neighbourhood of Arxiduc.
The area was sealed off and the bottle was taken to Son Espases Hospital in the capital Palma before being flown to a specialist centre in Madrid for tests.
Emergency responders in protective suits removed the container and took it to hospital where it was immediately stored at sub-freezing temperatures before its transfer to the mainland for analysis.
The bottle had the words “Filoviriade Ebola virus ARN” on it.
ARN would be RNA in English, with ebola and rabies being among the RNA viruses that cause human diseases.
Local reports said it had been discovered on top of residents’ postboxes just inside the ground-floor entrance to the flats.
A resident called emergency services after discovering it.
The area it was found in was cleaned and disinfected as a precaution following its removal.
And neighbours living in the apartment block were prevented from entering or leaving their homes for several hours while it was made safe.
It was not immediately clear this morning when the liquid inside the container would be tested.
But local health chiefs said initial inquiries – based on factors like the lack of a bar code on the bottle – pointed to the “Ebola” container being harmless and left there as part of a sick joke.
Cops are expected to quiz residents living inside the apartment block as part of a full probe into the find.
A new Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo sparked fresh fears of an epidemic.
Its health ministry announced earlier this week the number of confirmed cases had reached 31 – with nine deaths.
A long-running outbreak which started in 2014 caused thousands of deaths in Africa and major concern in Europe.
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