The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) says the passenger who was allowed to board an Air France flight despite U.S. Ebola restrictions, which forced the plane to divert to Montreal, is no longer in Canada.
“On May 20, 2026, at approximately 16:30 ET, the United States (U.S.) informed Canadian authorities that Air France flight AFR378 from Paris to Detroit was refused entry to the United States (U.S.) due to their temporary travel restrictions for anyone who travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan within the previous 21 days,” PHAC told Global News via email.
“A Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) Quarantine Officer assessed the traveller and determined they were asymptomatic.”
PHAC said the traveller has departed back to Paris. The Air France flight, along with all other passengers, has continued to Detroit.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ebola symptoms typically begin two to 21 days after someone is exposed to the virus.
Symptoms are easy to confuse with other illnesses, the CDC says, and notes that the first symptoms to appear are typically “generic” and include fever, aches and pains, severe headache, sore throat and weakness or fatigue.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection initially said the flight was diverted to Montreal Pierre Elliott Trudeau Airport after a passenger from the Democratic Republic of Congo boarded “in error” amid flight restrictions tied to the Ebola outbreak.
A spokesperson for the agency says the passenger “should not have boarded” the plane bound for Detroit due to U.S. entry restrictions put in place to reduce Ebola risk.
The U.S. border agency said it was taking “necessary measures” to protect public health in co-ordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Air France said the passenger was denied entry into the U.S. due to new regulations that travellers from certain countries, including Congo, can enter only through Washington.
Health officials are on alert as a deadly outbreak of a rare type of Ebola called Bundibugyo ravages the Congo and neighbouring Uganda.
Ontario’s health ministry says one person has been tested for several infectious diseases, including Ebola, out of an abundance of caution due to the person’s travel history.
The Public Health Agency of Canada says samples are expected to arrive at the National Microbiology Laboratory on Thursday.
The World Health Organization has reported almost 600 suspected cases and 139 suspected deaths, though officials believe the scale of the spread is much larger.
- With files from The Canadian Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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