Monkeypox Field Freezer

This image highlights the juxtaposition between modern technology and the real word in central Africa. This liquid nitrogen filled, vacuum pulled tank was the ultracold "freezer" that enabled tissues to be transported from the field to the laboratory. A filled tank would last from six to eight weeks under normal conditions.

In 1986 and 1987, the samples carried in these tanks were tested for evidence of monkeypox virus. They were shipped from Zaire (now the Democratic of the Congo) to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta and to a Moscow reference laboratory. At that time, only these two facilities were allowed to keep the smallpox virus (and conduct research on the related monkeypox virus).

In the photograph, the tank is lashed to bamboo for transport balanced on the shoulders of porters, one in front, and one behind. Now, the tank is being placed in a pirogue, a hollowed out log canoe, for a river crossing. The "rope" is local fiber and there are a pair of extra plastic sandals tied to the tank. (No one in the African jungle wore leather or closed foot gear, due to the risk of fugal infection).

The story that goes with this scene is that one of the workers went with the porters to take a filled tank back to the road, while I stayed in the village to continue the work. They were met by a villager who attacked them (for reasons not clear to me -- maybe to steal) In the fracas, the liquid nitrogen tank tipped over. As per industry standard, the tank cannot be sealed tight, so the insulated cap fits loosely in the neck.

As they related, a cloud of steam billowed up -- the escaping liquid nitrogen, at minus 320 degrees Fahrenheit. The attacker was frightened and ran off, while the porters quickly righted the tank. There was no harm done, but the incident could have turned deadly. In any case, the samples arrived in good shape halfway around, and on either side, of the world.

Photo by: D. Messinger