County Donegal Health officials in Ireland on Friday are expecting the results of tests on the body of a man who died after suffering Ebola-like symptoms.  It’s a shockwave in the rolling green hills of Donegal, which seems about as far removed from the West African Ebola Outbreak as one can get.

But the man – identified locally as 44-year old Dessie Quinn from Mountcharles – had recently returned from Sierra Leone, where he had been working for a telecommunications company.  That country, plus Guinea, Liberia, and Nigeria make up the four countries with confirmed cases and more than 1,350 deaths.  Nigeria got its Ebola cases through one plane passenger who was already symptomatic when he arrived from Liberia. 

Other air travelers from West Africa have been tested in other parts of the world, from Sacramento, California to Dubai, and some have died.  But there have been no other confirmed cases. 

Neighbors believed that Mr. Quinn was being treated for Malaria, although it’s not clear if that was through an outpatient facility or by family members.  His body was taken to isolation at Donegal’s Letterkenny Hospital.

“Everyone knew him,” said a neighbor who wished to remain anonymous.  “He was great company to be along with, he was a very nice fellow.”

Meanwhile, officials are assuring there’s little risk to the public.

“The appropriate public health guidelines are being followed at every stage in this process as a precaution,” said the head of the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre Dr. Darina O’Flanagan.