World bunkers down to keep deadly disease at bay
Thursday, April 17, 2003
asia.scmp.com
RAVINA SHAMDASANI, AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE AND REUTERS
Preventive measures against the outbreak of atypical pneumonia continued to be taken worldwide yesterday - even in countries that remain unaffected by the disease.
In South Korea, Foreign Minister Yoon Young-kwan, who recently returned from a trip to China, skipped a cabinet meeting and will have no contact with the president for two weeks, even though he shows no virus symptoms.
Rob Marshall, director of the Oscar-winning film Chicago, also cancelled a five-day promotion tour to Japan, even though Japan has no confirmed cases.
Australia yesterday banned people returning from affected regions from going to hospitals for 10 days unless they needed essential treatment.
Health authorities there said that deferring elective treatment of potentially infected individuals would reduce the risk of spreading the disease as most cases of Sars transmission had taken place in hospitals.
The Marshall Islands yesterday became the latest nation to bar visitors from Hong Kong, Singapore, parts of China and Toronto. The announcement came as two Chinese nationals who arrived in Majuro on Air Kiribati from Fiji were refused entry and sent back to Kiribati on the same flight.
In response to such travel restrictions, Philippines President Gloria Arroyo-Macapagal backed proposals to host a meeting of Asian airport authorities to discuss measures to stop the spread of the disease. Mrs Arroyo's spokesman, Ignacio Bunye, said airport officials from all affected countries and territories, particularly Hong Kong, would be invited.
French health officials announced five confirmed cases, with nine more under observation. Indonesia has three suspected cases, while Malaysia suspects two men may have died of Sars.
The Genome Institute of Singapore said yesterday a test kit to identify the virus would be ready by the end of the week. It could detect it before an infected person displayed any symptoms.
In Hong Kong, the Health Department yesterday was trying to track down passengers on an Air China flight from Beijing after a 71-year-old passenger was diagnosed with atypical pneumonia.
The passenger on flight CA 117 last Thursday, who is now in a stable condition, reported feeling unwell on the plane and was taken to Princess Margaret Hospital. |
