A doctor in New York tests positive for Ebola. An infected nurse shows signs of improvement. And a military response team begins training.
With multiple developments underway, here's the latest on the Ebola outbreak:
U.S. DEVELOPMENTS
Doctor tests positive
A Doctors Without Borders physician who recently returned to New York from West Africa has tested positive for the Ebola virus, becoming the first diagnosed case in the city, a law enforcement official briefed on the matter told CNN.
The doctor, identified by a law enforcement official as Craig Spencer, 33, arrived back in New York on October 17 after treating Ebola patients in Guinea, and developed a fever Thursday morning.
Obama cautiously optimistic
President Barack Obama is "cautiously more optimistic" that we may be turning the corner in the fight against Ebola. Two infected Americans are cured; Nigeria and Senegal are Ebola-free; and dozens of people who came in contact with now-deceased Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan didn't get the virus. "It gives you some sense that when it's caught early and where the public health infrastructure operates effectively, this outbreak can be stopped," he said.
Nurse Vinson to be transferred from isolation
Texas nurse Amber Vinson, being treated for Ebola at Atlanta's Emory University Hospital, is steadily regaining her strength and her spirits are high, her family said. Doctors can no longer detect the virus in Vinson's body, and she'll be transferred from isolation, her mother said.
Nurse Pham getting better
The condition of Nina Pham, who, like Vinson, contracted Ebola after treating Duncan, has been upgraded from fair to good.
Bentley the dog doing well
Samples from nurse Pham's dog Bentley tested negative for the virus. More specimens will be collected before the end of the 21-day quarantine.
Go team begins training
A 30-member U.S. military team that could be called on to respond to new cases of Ebola in the United States has begun specialized training at Fort Sam Houston in Texas. The weeklong training includes infection control and how to use the personal protective gear.
Complete coverage on Ebola
AFRICA DEVELOPMENTS
The rising toll
A total of 9,911 confirmed or probable cases, and 4,868 deaths have been reported in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, the World Health Organization said Wednesday. Every district in Sierra Leone has reported at least one case.
Mali's first confirmed case
A 2-year-old girl in Mali has been diagnosed with Ebola, making her the West African country's first confirmed case, health officials said Thursday.
The girl was brought to Mali from neighboring Guinea, where the outbreak this year is believed to have started, World Health Organization spokeswoman Yvette Bivigou said.
The girl, whose father died of Ebola, was taken to the hospital in Kayes after a nurse noticed she was suffering from what appeared to be Ebola-like symptoms. A test confirmed the girl has Ebola, Health Ministry spokeswoman Markatie Daou said.
Three-week monitoring for some travelers
All travelers coming to the United States from Ebola-affected areas will be actively monitored for 21 days, starting Monday. Also, all U.S.-bound passengers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea must land in one of the five U.S. airports with enhanced screening for Ebola: New York's John F.
Kennedy International, Washington Dulles, New Jersey's Newark Liberty International, Chicago's O'Hare International and Hartsfield-Jackson International in Atlanta.
Travel
In a Thursday press conference, World Health Organization officials again stressed that it opposes a travel ban as a means of controlling the virus.
Some in the United States and elsewhere have called for a blocking of those who attempt to enter the nation by air, while many in the scientific and medical community say doing so would make those with Ebola more difficult to track because they would attempt to cross borders by land. If the United States were to institute a travel ban, it would be unprecedented.
Earlier, Belize's government issued a ban on citizens of affected West African countries.
ASIA DEVELOPMENTS
No entry to North Korea
A pair of Beijing-based agencies that specialize in travel to North Korea say they've been told by their "partners in Pyongyang" that the nation won't allow international tourists to enter starting Friday, due to the threat of Ebola. It's not clear whether the restriction affects business travelers.
(CNN)
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