The freelance photojournalist who contracted Ebola while working for NBC News in Liberia has posted extensively to Twitter in the last few days to discuss his battle with the deadly virus.
Over the course of several tweets, Ashoka Mukpo expressed thanks to the staff at Nebraska Medical Center, where he’s undergone treatment since returning to the United States earlier this month, and defended Dr. Nancy Snyderman, the embattled chief medical editor for NBC News who’s come under fire for violating her quarantine following her own return from West Africa.
Mukpo and Snyderman worked alongside each other briefly while covering the outbreak.
“Special shout out to Nancy Snyderman at NBC News,” Mukpo tweeted on Tuesday. “For the record me and her were never within 3 feet of each other once. Be nice to her plz.”
Mukpo said in a tweet on Monday that his recovery has been a “truly humbling feeling.” He also said he was mystified as to how he contracted the disease, but stood by his decision to travel to Liberia.
For the record – no idea how I got it. It was something fluky. My best guess is I touched a surface and didn’t chlorinate fast enough.
— ashoka (@unkyoka) October 20, 2014
I was around a lot of sick people the week before I got sick. Thought I was keeping a good distance, wish I knew exactly what went wrong.
— ashoka (@unkyoka) October 20, 2014
But I don’t regret going to Liberia to cover the crisis. That country was a second home to me and I had to help raise the alarm.
— ashoka (@unkyoka) October 20, 2014
Mukpo is said to be doing “quite well” and he’s expected to be released from the biocontainment unit at the Omaha hospital sometime this week.
It’s irresponsible for guy reporter to support Snyderman. He wants to be in the spotlight and has lost all credibility. He has a duty as an off-air talent to film Nancy Snyderman, and as such, should take responsibility for his support of Snyderman’s breaking her self-imposed quarantine. He’s literally encouraging her to infect other people with Ebola. He should be fired.
What did you expect him to say? He’s got the e-BOO!-la too!
I SAY WE BURN 'EM ALL GODAMMIT!!!
Apparently Ebola ate this guys brain.
You’re scaring me, Eustace. Can you go back to strange typography so I know when you’re in character?
I’m carrying on the outrage from yesterday’s discussion.