UK: Concern continues to grow as SARS claims its 100th victim
Fears over Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) hit home yesterday when it was revealed that baggage handlers at Heathrow wore masks to unload planes from Far East destinations.
Concern over SARS is continuing to grow in the Far East; Hong Kong says it is expecting to treat some 3,000 patients in the coming weeks – the former colony has just 700 cases at present – while Vietnam is said to be considering banning visitors from countries affected by the disease. There are now known to have been more than 100 victims of the disease, while more than 2,400 people are known to have caught the illness globally.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office yesterday updated its advice for visitors to Taiwan, in the light of the continuing outbreak. The FCO website, at www.fco.gov.uk/travel, reads: “As at 7 April there have been 20 probable cases of SARS in Taiwan, with a further 21 further suspected cases but not fatalities. The majority of these cases are people who travelled the mainland, but there are a small number of people who have been in close contact with probable cases and have themselves become probable cases. The Taiwanese Authorities are requiring contacts of probable and suspected cases to remain in quarantine.”
