Houston Health Department officials implemented Ebola screenings at George Bush Intercontinental Airport for travelers arriving from affected African regions beginning at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday. The screenings, conducted in coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention staff, will last up to 28 days and may be extended if the outbreak is not contained.

Federal personnel meet arriving passengers from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, and Uganda and escort them to a designated screening area. Travel restrictions already prohibit anyone who has been in the Democratic Republic of the Congo within the past 21 days from entering the U.S. to attend the FIFA World Cup.

Dr. Theresa Tran, director of the Houston Health Department, was at the airport Tuesday to observe the procedures. She briefed the Houston City Council on the city’s response to the Ebola outbreak and said the World Cup and the CDC’s Ebola response are running "parallel" to each other. "Those who are coming to watch the games from other countries are not going to be allowed in if they’ve been in the areas of concern within the past 21 days," Tran said. She added that Bush Airport could screen 30 to 50 people per day during the screening period.

"We’re ready. We’re not at a place where we need to cause panic or alarm," Tran told the Houston City Council. She said Houston health officials are "lockstep" with other health officials, including Harris County Health. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said most fans traveling to the World Cup in Houston are U.S. citizens.