- SEATTLE (AP) -- A half-dozen passers-by who helped victims of a fatal
bus crash may have been exposed to the virus that causes AIDS through the
blood of a seriously injured person who is HIV-positive, health officials
say.
-
- After issuing a warning last week about
the possibility of exposure, the Seattle-King County Department of Public
Health received dozens of calls. Officials determined about a half-dozen
who were exposed to blood at the scene should get medical evaluations.
-
- About 20 good Samaritans rushed to help
victims of the Nov. 27 crash, when a passenger shot the bus driver and
himself, sending the bus off the city's Aurora Bridge and onto a building
50 feet below. The driver, the shooter and a passenger were killed and
32 other people injured.
-
- Sixty-five firefighters and another 10
off-duty firefighters also helped, but they are trained to wear gloves
to protect themselves from exposure to HIV. Surviving passengers on the
bus were also urged to get evaluated.
-
- Officials said the risk of transmission
is very low and there are no known cases of good Samaritans contracting
HIV or other blood-borne diseases by aiding accident victims.
-
- Risk factors for infection include having
cuts or wounds that came into contact with blood at the accident or having
blood splashed into the eyes, nose or mouth.
-
- Health officials learned of the risk
of HIV from the infected person's doctor, who kept secret his or her identity.
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