Ebola: Second Texas Nurse Amber Vinson Took Flight While Infected and Showing Symptoms 'Due to CDC Error'

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) gave Amber Vinson – the second Texas nurse to be diagnosed with Ebola – permission to fly on a commercial flight, even though she reported having symptoms of the virus to the organisation multiple times.

Vinson flew from Cleveland to Dallas on Monday, even though she had called the CDC "several times" to complain of a 99.5 degree temperature, CNN reports.

But the CDC told her she was allowed to fly because her temperature was under the 100.4 degree "high risk" level, despite her exposure to Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan, who has died of the disease.

The day after landing in Dallas, Vinson was admitted to hospital before being formally diagnosed with the deadly virus on Wednesday. She became exposed to Ebola while treating Duncan and is the second Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital nurse involved in the case to test positive.

Critics have said the Dallas hospital that treated Duncan was "completely unprepared" to cope with the virus.

CDC director Thomas Frieden has since acknowledged that Vinson should not have been allowed to board a commercial aircraft containing members of the public.

The CDC say the aircraft she travelled on has now been taken out of service in order to contain the highly contagious disease, but not before flying passengers to Cleveland, Fort Lauderdale and Atlanta, Gawker reports.

Vinson is understood to have been moved to Emory University Hospital, which has successfully treated two other Ebola patients in the US.

CNN reports that the move was motivated in part to prevent a walkout at the Dallas hospital.