Criticism in Thailand of the screening method of travelers from China is increasing now that an infection in Hua Hin has also become known. A 73-year-old woman arrived at Suvarnabhumi with two girlfriends on January 19 and took a taxi to Hua Hin. She was hospitalized with a fever and quarantined. According to the governor, the girlfriends show no symptoms of the disease, but the taxi driver has not yet been found.
So far, five infections with the virus have been confirmed in Thailand and there are twenty cases of patients suspected of contracting the virus. They are under further investigation. All persons are from Wuhan or have been there.
Thailand's airports began screening passengers from China on January 3, but only those arriving from the high-risk area. An estimated 24.000 Chinese passengers land on Don Mueang every day. There are 13 inbound and 12 outbound flights between Guangzhou and Don Mueang.
China Southern Airlines, which operates three daily flights between Wuhan and Suvarnabhumi, has suspended all flights until February 8. Managing director Sutheerawat of Suvarnabhumi says provisions are being made for travelers unable to return to Wuhan. Chiang Mai airport reports that some 200 to 300 passengers have been stranded. Flights are arranged so that they can travel to their destination within three days.
Officials at Suvarnabhumi are awaiting information from Chinese authorities before deciding to also screen Chinese tourists from cities other than Wuhan and Guangzhou for fever. Many Thai are angry about this and expressed their frustration on social media. They believe that the Thai government is more concerned about tourism than about the health of Thai people. China is the largest tourist source in Thailand with almost 11 million visitors.
More than 2.000 people have now been infected with the new corona virus, the death toll has risen to 56. Almost all deaths have occurred in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located. That is the city where the lung virus broke out at the end of last month. People have also died in the neighboring province of Henan and in Shanghai, about 800 kilometers from Wuhan.
Source: Bangkok Post
Have I ever wondered, if you stand in line at immigration with 500 people and then all do the finger scan, how easily can travelers infect each other.
As far as a well-organized control is concerned, to what extent this is possible at all, I do have my problems, especially with regard to Thailand.
If we only look at the extremely poor control of existing legislation, on driving under the influence of alcohol, the burning of fields, inadequate measures against air-polluting traffic, which often lead to months in increasingly large parts of Thailand, the air takes on extremely dangerous forms, then I have little confidence that something will actually function in this health check.
In particular, the fact that only Chinese people from the risk areas fall under the control already indicates that the same procedure is applied as the control on the rest of the legislation.
The number of confirmed cases now stands at 7. I'm afraid this is just the beginning. If the risk of infection is indeed high, while the man or woman in question feels nothing and does not (yet) have a fever, the scanners are only of limited use and Thailand still has a lot to do.
The new coronavirus is also contagious during the incubation period, which will increase the number of infections considerably. So says the Chinese health authority. Source: NOS.nl
If strict (quarantine) measures are not taken, a global coronavirus pandemic is imminent. That is what leading virologists say to the Reuters news agency. Source: Telegraph
Moderator: Comments without initial capitals and periods at the end of a sentence will not be posted.
https://www.thaipbsworld.com/eight-confirmed-coronavirus-cases-in-thailand-so-far/
But they were quicker than several other governments.
Besides, I don't think there is an adequate way to screen something so little is known about.
In that respect, the moderator here has it easier.
Perhaps he or she can comment on the use of the space bar, which is rather neglected by some.
As for the virus, I certainly don't want to downplay this, but I do wonder how many patients have died with the virus and how many because of the virus.
The amount of attention is disproportionate to the amount of deaths related to this particular virus.