UK: Passengers locked inside jet for an hour while doctors check passengers
A British Midland flight was quarantined at Glasgow Airport last night after a family of four was taken ill after travelling from Pakistan.
The Airbus 300 jet, carrying some 130 passengers, was held at the airport while doctors boarded the plane and the doors were locked for more than an hour. Initial reports suggested the family was suffering from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome – SARS – which has been recently spread through air travel, though this has not yet been confirmed.
Latest reports say the family were all suffering from a severe stomach bug they had picked up in Pakistan, while the other passengers on board were eventually allowed to disembark.
The fact that the flight was effectively quarantined, however, reflects how seriously the world’s health authorities are taking the threat of SARS. The condition has so far killed more than 10 people across the world and the World Health Organisation has described it as a “serious global threat”.
