Authorities step up airport screenings as illness triggers reminder of SARS
MICHELLE CHAN, Nikkei staff writer
JANUARY 03, 2020 20:28 JST
HONG KONG -- Asian governments are stepping up precautionary measures to prevent an outbreak of a mysterious illness after Chinese health authorities reported 44 cases of a "viral pneumonia of unknown origin" amid concerns that the flu-like virus is linked to the highly contagious SARS virus that caused hundreds of deaths in Asia and elsewhere 17 years ago.
The outbreak prompted authorities in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia to take emergency measures, including stricter health control at borders and temperature screenings on all flights from Wuhan, in China's central Hubei Province, where the outbreak originated. Chinese officials said on Friday that 11 patients remained in critical condition with respiratory tract infection symptoms, including fever and breathing difficulty.
Health authorities in Hong Kong were on high alert following five cases of patients developing symptoms of respiratory infections and fever after visiting Wuhan, about four hours by train from Hong Kong. Two of the patients have been discharged from the hospital following a full recovery and a third has tested negative for SARS, influenza and avian flu. The government said on Friday evening that two others are awaiting test results.
"No serious pneumonia cases linked to the Wuhan outbreak had been reported in Hong Kong so far," Sophia Chan, Hong Kong's Secretary for Food and Health, said late Thursday night.
The Hong Kong government has rolled out new prevention measures, including a daily announcement of any suspected cases, installing additional thermal imaging systems at Hong Kong International Airport, as well as increasing steps to clean and disinfect incoming express trains and planes from Wuhan.
