Sarah Okeson

Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A doctor here donned a protective suit Thursday at Atlanta's international airport to protest the way federal health authorities are handling the threat from Ebola.

Dr. Gil Mobley, a microbiologist and emergency trauma physician, said his protective gear was taken away after he boarded his Delta flight at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. He removed the protective gear — space suit coveralls, hood mask, goggles, gloves and boots with "CDC is Lying" written on the back of the coveralls — once he reached the gate.

"They gave me the option of confiscating my equipment or not flying," Mobley said.

Mobley's flight comes two days after a man who traveled from Liberia to Dallas became sick five days later in Texas. Liberian officials said they plan to prosecute the man, Thomas Eric Duncan, saying he lied on an airport questionnaire about having no contact with a person infected with Ebola.

Mobley said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is sugarcoating the threat of Ebola in the United States.

"With 10,000 people flying out of West Africa daily, it's only a matter of time until all corners of the world are exposed," Mobley said. "Once it devours Third World countries, the U.S. will be importing these cases daily. Eventually, the clusters will overwhelm even the most advanced countries' ability to isolate and quarantine all those exposed. The CDC needs to be honest with us. "

Mobley said he flew from Guatemala to Atlanta and was asked only if he had tobacco or alcohol. He then flew to Springfield, a city of almost 165,000 residents about 200 miles southwest of St. Louis, landing at about 9 a.m. CT.

Ebola is transmitted when a person comes into direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids, including sweat, of a person who is sick from the virus. It is not an airborne virus like influenza.

Mobley said he notified Delta and the Transportation Security Administration of his plans before the flight.

"The CDC is asleep at the wheel," Mobley said. "It's going to be bad, and I want to make sure that this conversation is happening that this could get out of control in the United States."