AEGiS-AP: Good Sams May Have Had HIV Exposure

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1998. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Good Sams May Have Had HIV Exposure

Associated Press - Wednesday, December 9, 1998

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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