Winnipeg lab employee potentially exposed to Ebola virus

WINNIPEG — An employee at the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease in Winnipeg may have been exposed to the Ebola virus.

On Monday, the employee was working with infected pigs at the Level 4 lab around 2 p.m. The employee noticed a tear in their protective suit during decontamination after working in the lab, officials from the Public Health Agency of Canada said.

The employee was offered a vaccine but it is not known whether the staff member took it due to privacy issues.

How the employee’s suit ripped it also not known at this point.

The employee is in isolation and will be monitired for 21 days by local health officials.

Officials say the risk to the employee and the public is considered low.

With files from the Canadian Press