Ebola scare on LAX shuttle briefly closes Union Station bus plaza

Los Angeles Union Station’s bus plaza was shut down for an hour and a half Friday afternoon after a man who had recently traveled to Nigeria said he felt feverish and nauseous, but officials cautioned that he did not have Ebola.

“It’s not Ebola,” said Sarah Kissell Garrett, a spokeswoman with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. “It’s not suspected Ebola. It’s not Ebola.”

The passenger had just taken the FlyAway shuttle bus from Los Angeles International Airport, Metro spokesman Paul Gonzales said. The passenger told officials he had traveled to Nigeria but had been in the United States for three weeks.

Authorities closed off the bus plaza “out of an abundance of caution,” Gonzales said.

Earlier this month, a passenger wearing a mask boarded a Line 33 bus in Pico-Union and yelled “Don’t mess with me, I have Ebola!” The bus was taken out of service and the driver was taken to L.A. County-USC Medical Center for observation.

Four people were on the bus with the sick man Friday. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics transported seven people to area hospitals for further examination, agency spokeswoman Katherine Main said.

“We’re happy that Ebola was ruled out,” Main said. “We see it as a good opportunity to practice our emergency protocols.” The 32 crew members who came to the bus plaza are being put through decontamination procedures, she said.

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