The New Jersey Health Department has issued a mandatory quarantine for NBC News crew members who were exposed to Ebola while on assignment in Liberia.
In a statement, the department said the quarantine order was made after the crew violated its agreement to voluntarily quarantine themselves for 21 days.
“Before returning to the United States, the NBC crew made an agreement with the New Jersey Department of Health and local health officials to voluntarily self-confine themselves for the remainder of the 21 days following their low risk of exposure on October 1 to an individual who is being treated for Ebola,” the department said in a statement.
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It continued, “Unfortunately, the NBC crew violated this agreement and so the Department of Health Friday evening issued a mandatory quarantine order to ensure that the crew will remain confined until Oct. 22.”
The NBC crew, which includes NBC News chief medical editor and correspondent Dr. Nancy Snyderman, remains symptom-free, according to the department. It said there’s “no reason for concern of exposure to the community.”
An NBC spokesperson issued the following statement:
We cannot comment on any individual case due to privacy concerns. Upon returning from Liberia, our team was deemed to be low risk, and agreed to follow guidelines set by local health authorities. We fully support those guidelines and continue to expect that they be followed. Our team are all well with normal temperatures, which they check multiple times a day, and they are also in daily contact with local health officials.
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The crew returned to the U.S. after discovering that freelance cameraman Ashoka Mukpo had been infected with the Ebola virus while working in Liberia.
After the discovery, NBC News president Deborah Turness wrote in a note to staff: “In an abundance of caution, we will fly them back on a private charter flight and then they will place themselves under quarantine in the United States for 21 days — which is at the most conservative end of the spectrum of medical guidance.”
According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, those exposed to Ebola develop symptoms anywhere from two to 21 days after being exposed to the virus.
Mukpo, 33, returned to the U.S. earlier this week and was admitted to the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, one of the few medical facilities in the U.S. with experience treating Ebola.
Note: NBC News responded to TheWrap’s request for comment after the article was published. Its statement has been added.