Louisiana Fights to Keep Dallas Ebola Ashes Out

Six truckloads of linens, carpets, bedding, and other materials were taken from the Dallas apartment where Thomas Eric Duncan was staying, all of it potentially contaminated with the Ebola virus—and it's not clear where it will end up. The material was reportedly brought to Port Arthur, Texas, on Friday and incinerated; the incinerated material was then set to end up in a hazardous waste landfill in Louisiana. But Louisiana's attorney general is applying for a temporary restraining order to block that from happening, WWLTV reports.

"The health and safety of our Louisiana citizens is our top priority," Buddy Caldwell explained last night, according to the Times-Picayune. "There are too many unknowns at this point, and it is absurd to transport potentially hazardous Ebola waste across state lines. This situation is certainly unprecedented and we want to approach it with the utmost caution. We just can't afford to take any risks when it comes to this deadly virus." The application for the order was expected to be filed this morning, and the attorney general's office is also sending letters to Texas officials and private contractors demanding additional information about how the waste will be handled. The CDC's line on the topic: Waste that has been properly incinerated is no longer infectious. (Dallas is now dealing with its second case of Ebola.)