Coronavirus evacuees return safely to U.S. via innovative, MRIGlobal-designed biocontainment system

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Feb. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Fourteen U.S. citizens who tested positive for coronavirus are receiving medical treatment back home in the U.S. today – and not thousands of miles away in Japan – partly in thanks to innovative technology by biocontainment and global health experts at MRIGlobal, based in Kansas City, Missouri.

As reported on international news, the citizens were evacuated on Monday from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which had been quarantined off the coast of Japan for more than 10 days. The patients were evacuated in the safest manner to a specialized containment area on chartered evacuation aircraft to isolate them, using standard protocols, for medical care in coronavirus treatment centers in the U.S. 

One of the specialized units was designed by MRIGlobal engineers through a private-public partnership with U.S. Department of State and the Paul Allen Foundation in response to the Ebola outbreak in 2014. The units are state-of-the-art, flight-ready containerized biocontainment systems (CBCS) that roll on and off planes. MRIGlobal designed the CBCS as a reusable bio-containment and medical treatment unit to operate on government/civilian cargo aircraft. The units can containerize highly contagious pathogens, are extremely durable and allow for the safe transport of critically ill patients while maintaining biocontainment and safe flight.

According to Dean Gray, Ph.D., Director at MRIGlobal, "We're proud to play a part in helping to safely evacuate people out of harm's way to locations where they can receive appropriate medical care."

"There's nothing like the CBCS for flyable medical transport," added Gray. "It was developed to respond to critical global health situations like the coronavirus outbreak, and ultimately to save lives."

To date, MRIGlobal has designed and delivered four CBCS units, which are in use by the U.S. government.

MRIGlobal's state-of-the-art, flight-ready Containerized Biocontainment System (CBCS) was awarded an R&D100 Award for Innovation by R&D Magazine in 2016. Each year R&D Magazine presents the awards to 100 of the most technologically significant and innovative technologies introduced to the marketplace over the past year.

MEDIA NOTES:

• For more information about CBCS, visit https://mriglobal.org/containerized-bio-containment-system-cbcs/
• This video provides details on CBCS size, construction materials and capabilities. https://youtu.be/RI7WcxRSWhA
• MRIGlobal has a spokesperson available who can discuss the importance of biocontainment in global health situations, and how innovative transport systems like CBCS play a role in containing and managing outbreaks.

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SOURCE MRIGlobal