Funeral Homes Nationwide and In Chattanooga Prepared In Case of Ebola Outbreak and Hamilton County Health Dept Offer Advice To Those Concerned

CHATTANOOGA,TN, (WDEF)-The World Health Organization has now declared this Ebola outbreak as the biggest and most dangerous since the virus was first discovered back in 1976.

The CDC has warned funeral homes across the nation about post-mortem care and embalming if the outbreak spreads in the US.

"It’s important to protect ourselves regardless of whether we know or not, somebody could be infected with a communicable disease and we not even be aware of it, so it’s important for us to take precautions every time we handle a body."

Steve Smith of Legacy Funeral Homes has been an embalmer for more than 30 years and says his team are prepared for an Ebola situation.

"We are actually doing training next week with all of our employees. It’s required by OSHA to do yearly training in regards to hazardous communication, safety and personal protection."

Epidemiologists at the Hamilton County Health Department say they are not surprised by the Ebola case in Texas and have this advice for those who are concerned or alarmed in Chattanooga.

Dan Walker, Epidemiologist advises those who are concerned about the disease or who may have come in contact with a carrier, to do the following, "They should take their temperature twice a day, in the morning and the evening and watch for other signs of Ebola, if they do have an increased temperature of 101.5 and other symptoms they should contact their health care provider immediately."

Epidemiologist Dan Walker says there is no reason for major alarm in our community, but being prepared is still vital.

"Please remember that a person is not contagious if they are not showing symptoms at the time. They are only contagious when they do show symptoms."

The CDC say they are investigating anyone the Texas ebola patient came in contact with and the ambulance the patient was transported in has been put out of use.