SUVA, June 20 (Xinhua) -- Fijian authorities denied on Thursday that the infectious disease caused the death of U.S. couple on the island nation last month.
"Following an extensive, multi-organisational investigation, the Fijian government has informed the family that an infectious cause of death has officially been ruled out," Fiji's health ministry said in a statement.
"To reach this conclusion, a number of investigations were conducted by the ministry and its multinational partners, including post-mortem examinations, toxicology, microscopic examination of tissues, and a number of laboratory investigations to exclude a wide range of viral and bacterial causes," the ministry said.
"Through continued collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, further tests are being conducted to determine a cause of death, and family will be updated as further developments unfold."
The ministry ensured the public that there is no risk to the public based on these findings.
The five contacts or staff members from a Fijian hotel placed under precautionary observation are in good health and have all returned to work.
The U.S. couple were 38-year-old David James Paul, a Lockheed Martin engineer, and his 35-year-old wife Jane Michelle Canalog Paul. The couple, originally from Fort Worth, a city in the U.S. state of Texas, arrived in Denarau Island on May 22.
The wife died on May 25 at the clinic on Denarau Island and husband died on May 28 at a hospital in Lautoka, the second largest city in Fiji.
The couple were sick during their holiday on the island. Although they were provided medical treatment, they died after the illnesses deteriorated their health.
