Baja California’s Secretary of Health ran a binational disease screening drill at Tijuana International Airport on Wednesday, testing protocols for detecting Ebola, hantavirus, and measles ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The exercise simulated the arrival of an international traveler showing febrile symptoms consistent with high-impact infectious diseases. Health officials used the scenario to evaluate isolation procedures, immediate response times, and coordination between Mexican and U.S. agencies.
The drill was led by Jorge Oggún Cano Torres, head of the Department of Epidemiology and Health Information, and Eduardo Daniel Becerra Cárdenas, the binational surveillance and response coordinator from the California Department of Health. It included two separate scenarios: one for a case detected at Tijuana’s airport and another for a case identified at the San Ysidro port of entry.
Cross-Border Health Agencies Join Forces
Participants included FIFA liaisons, the Centro Operativo de Atención a Contingencias (COPAC, the state emergency operations center), the Mexico-U.S. Border Health Commission, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the San Diego County Department of Public Health. Local emergency services, including Tijuana’s fire department, civil protection, and municipal medical services, also took part alongside airport personnel and airline staff.
Baja California’s health secretary acknowledged that the probability of detecting Ebola or hantavirus cases remains low. The protocols were originally designed for other diseases but were recently expanded to include Ebola and hantavirus because of the expected influx of visitors from Europe and Africa during the tournament.
Why Tijuana Is a Focus
Tijuana will host World Cup matches at Estadio Caliente, making the city a key destination for international fans. The Aeropuerto Internacional Abelardo L. Rodríguez is also the only commercial airport in the world with a cross-border pedestrian bridge connecting directly to the United States, through the CBX terminal in San Diego County. That binational character makes coordinated health screening especially critical.
International passengers arriving at Tijuana’s airport will be subject to medical screenings aimed at catching infectious diseases before they spread. The drill comes as all three World Cup host countries, the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, face a recent surge in measles cases, and health officials worldwide track a rare hantavirus outbreak that has drawn attention in recent weeks.
The exercise was first reported by Semanario Zeta.