A cargo ship with a patient having symptoms that could potentially mean he is infected with Ebola was not allowed to enter Malta yesterday evening, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat told members of the media.

Addressing editors, the PM said that at 8pm Thursday the Maltese port authorities received a request from the captain of MV Western Copenhagen, registered in Hong Kong, which was sailing in between Malta and Sicily, for the ship to enter Malta.

The captain said that a Filipino on board his ship, which was carrying 21 crewmen and had left Guinea on its way to the Ukraine, needed medical assistance.

The case definition provided by the captain indicated that the person in question could be infected with the Ebola virus, as the symptoms manifested were similar to what other patients with the disease have suffered from, the PM said.

Dr Muscat said that the Maltese authorities were not in a position to check whether the captain’s indications were “understating or overstating” the situation. Neither was it possible to know whether this person was the only one to be infected.

Government medical and legal experts concluded that based on the information provided, the ship should not be allowed to enter.

The PM said that “we are morally and legally correct” in the decision taken, because although all countries are bound to assist people in need, they should not do so while risking their own people’s health and national security. “We cannot endanger our health system,” Dr Muscat said.

Although we are prepared to deal with the eventuality of having to treat such cases, Malta should not take unnecessary risks. The ship was not allowed to enter Maltese waters, which were supervised by Armed Forces of Malta patrol boats.

The PM said that the ship has also made contact to enter an Italian port but it is not known if permission has been granted. Dr Muscat said that Malta is in direct contact with “other countries” on this case.

The Opposition has been informed of the situation, the PM said, with Dr Muscat making a personal contact with Dr Simon Busuttil.

Contacted by The Malta Independent, the PN said it gave the government full support on this issue.

Present for the press conference was also parliamentary secretary for health Chris Fearne who said that a contingency plan to tackle any Ebola case has been put in place since May, when the crisis in sub-Saharan African erupted.

Dr Fearne said that Ebola cases are treated individually and it is not possible to prescribe any medication unless the patient is seen by a specialist.

The press conference was also attended by Deputy PM Louis Grech, Justice Minister Owen Bonnici, the Attorney General Peter Grech, OPM chief of Staff Keith Schembri, Transport Malta chairman James Piscopo, Head of Civil Service Mario Cutajar and Brigadier Jeffrey Curmi.