SARS alert at Czech airports
Amid growing concern over the spread of the killer pneumonia virus, the Czech Hygiene Office has ordered precautionary measures to be taken at the country's international airports and on all Czech flights to high-risk destinations.
"Airport management is introducing instructions received from the country's chief hygiene officer. This entails taking extra precautions on all flights to China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines. Passengers on those flights will receive leaflets informing them about the symptoms of the disease, how to take precautions and where to seek medical attention. Any passenger on an incoming flight from Asia who appears to suffer from these symptoms will be taken to hospital on arrival and the airport has to provide a list of passengers from any risk flight."
Although no case has as yet been reported in the Czech Republic, the Czech health ministry has given hospitals instructions regarding isolation units for potential patients and has launched an information campaign in the media and on its own web pages. News that the virus has already appeared in Great Britain and neighbouring Germany has prompted concern, especially among Czechs who have recently been or are planning trips to the affected regions.
Annually some 250 thousand Czechs travel to Asia on holiday trips or business and travel agencies say that, although they are answering a lot of queries regarding the health situation in different regions, few people are canceling planned trips. The Foreign Ministry is, however, advising caution, and as a preventive measure has temporarily closed down the Czech consulate in Hanoi, thus restricting the number of Vietnamese who travel to the Czech Republic.
