Air Canada flight from Vancouver carried child with measles
Passengers on April 9 8:30 p.m. PT flight to Edmonton may have been exposed to measles
Health officials in Edmonton are issuing warnings after a passenger who arrived in the city on a flight from Vancouver was later diagnosed with measles, but similar warnings have not been issued in Vancouver.
On Saturday, Alberta Health officials confirmed that a child with measles arrived in Vancouver from the Philippines, and then transferred to Air Canada Flight 248, which departed Vancouver at 8:30 p.m. PT on April 9.
Alberta medical health officers said anyone on that flight or in Edmonton International Airport several hours after the plane landed at 9:35 p.m. MT may have been exposed.
Alberta medical health officer Dr. Marcia Johnson said officials contacted affected agencies in B.C. to alert them about the case.
Vancouver Coastal Health wasn't able to confirm on Saturday afternoon whether a warning had been issued in the region.
A spokesperson for Vancouver International Airport said no warning has been issued by the airport, noting that such a warning would be prompted by provincial health officials.
Measles is an extremely contagious respiratory disease caused by a virus, involving a red whole-body rash. The virus can spread through the air, and it usually takes 10 to 12 days from exposure before symptoms occur.
Most people who get the measles survive, but between one and three cases out of every 1,000 can be fatal.
British Columbia is currently in the grips of a large outbreak, with at least 375 cases so far, while Alberta has confirmed 15 cases so far in 2014.
Johnson said the Philippines is also in the midst of a measles outbreak.
With files from CBC News