Centers for Disease Control and PreventionArts+Culture / NewsEbola fears hit Brooklyn after NY doctor tests positiveThat still hasn't stopped people from making inappropriate hipster jokesShareLink copied ✔️October 24, 2014Arts+CultureNewsText Thomas Gorton A Williamsburg music venue in Brooklyn, New York has been temporarily shut down after a doctor who has since tested positive for Ebola visited the venue. Dr Craig Spencer had recently returned from Guinea in West Africa and went to the Gutter last night. The bowling alley slash gig space has now been cleared for inspection by health investigators. Dr Spencer is the ninth person to test positive for Ebola in the US. One patient, a Liberian citizen called Thomas Duncan, died of the disease on 8 October in Dallas. It is believed that Spencer caught the disease while treating Ebola victims in Guina while working for Doctors Without Borders. People are obviously freaking out, although a few seem to be trying to process their fear through the medium of bad hipster jokes: Some Brooklyn hipster is weighing the coolness/deadliness tradeoff of being first to get ebola.— Joshua Green (@JoshuaGreen) October 23, 2014Meet the Brooklyn Twentysomethings Deliberately Contracting Ebola in Order to Say They Had It Before Everyone— Mαtt Thomαs (@mattthomas) October 24, 2014Tomorrow's NYT Today: "In Brooklyn, Artisanal Pickles And Ebola"— Hunter Walker (@hunterw) October 23, 2014 Inappropriate much, guys? But it's important to note that the US should be pretty well-equipped to suppress an epidemic, especially seeing as Ebola is not an airborne virus and is only contagious if a person is displaying symptoms. Meanwhile, countries which lack the infrastructure necessary to contain the spread of disease are still struggling to cope. So far, 10,000 cases have been reported across Africa, with a death toll of 5,000. City officials moved to quash any hysteria at a press conference. "He did not have a stage of disease that creates a risk of contagiousness on the subway," Dr. Mary Bassett, the city's health commissioner, said. "We consider it extremely unlikely, the probability being close to nil, that there will be any problem related to his taking the subway system." Dr Spencer took an Uber yesterday (the company subsequently released a statement confirming that the driver of the cab has been notified) and reportedly went on a three mile run, rode the subway and went bowling – all of which suggests that he wasn't displaying any of the incapacitating symptoms associated with the virus. So don't worry, Brooklyn won't become a quarantine zone. Here's hoping Spencer makes a full recovery. Escape the algorithm! Get The DropEmail address SIGN UP Get must-see stories direct to your inbox every weekday. Privacy policy Thank you. You have been subscribed Privacy policy Expand your creative community and connect with 15,000 creatives from around the world.TrendingThese photos portray life on a tropical island as a beautiful prisonCaptives of Liberty, an evocative new series by photographer Aymane Alhamid, explores the problems facing young people – from arranged marriages to being denied citizenship rights – on the French island of MayotteArt & PhotographyFilm & TV9 great films you can watch on YouTube for freeHEYDUDEFashionHEYDUDE wants you to be outside this summerArt & PhotographyWild photos of Melbourne’s multiplying ‘dyke’ dancefloorsBeauty10 of the hottest Instagram accounts fusing art, sex and eroticaArt & PhotographyHow a cult artist from Japan predicted today’s bleak timesLife & CultureHaving a landline is now the ultimate post-digital flexArt & PhotographyCamille Vivier’s fierce, fantastical photographs of the female formFashionWorld Cup 2026: Unpacking the 13 most stylish football kits on the pitchEscape the algorithm! Get The DropEmail address SIGN UP Get must-see stories direct to your inbox every weekday. Privacy policy Thank you. You have been subscribed Privacy policy