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Coronavirus: 1,500 from Hong Kong screened at airport
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Chennai:27.01.2020
Around 1,500 passengers from Hong Kong were screened at Chennai airport in the past few days for symptoms of fever as coronavirus spreads in China.
An official said counters with thermal scanners were opened and screening began on January 21.
“We have one direct flight from Hong Kong daily which has a load of 300 to 350 passengers. These passengers are being screened. A quarantine area has been set up to move people if they are found with influenza-like symptoms,” said an official.
Though airports in Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok are screening passengers, airlines are taking steps to ensure that passengers and crew are safe. Flights from the infected destinations are being fumigated and crew has been told to watch for those who show signs of fever. Chennai has direct flight links to Hong Kong and Japan where cases of the virus have been detected. There are around seven flights on weekdays and nine flights on weekends between Chennai and Singapore. But all passengers from Singapore flights are not screened.
There is a general instruction to look out for passengers who have visited infected areas in China.
IndiGo airlines, which operates flights to Chengdu and Guangzhou, said, “Our crew are taking appropriate precautions. There have been no cases reported yet in our Chinese points, which are around 1,000 km from Wuhan, nor indeed in India. We are in close touch with government authorities and will advise about any alterations to our schedule as and when they occur. Meantime, we have thousands of forward bookings and are serving those customers as normal.”
Airports Authority of India (AAI) has already instructed airlines to make inflight announcements to spread awareness. Notice boards have been set up to instruct passengers who do not have symptoms on arrival to report to district health authorities if they develop cold or fever within 28days of arrival.
Coronavirus: 1,500 from Hong Kong screened at airport
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Chennai:27.01.2020
Around 1,500 passengers from Hong Kong were screened at Chennai airport in the past few days for symptoms of fever as coronavirus spreads in China.
An official said counters with thermal scanners were opened and screening began on January 21.
“We have one direct flight from Hong Kong daily which has a load of 300 to 350 passengers. These passengers are being screened. A quarantine area has been set up to move people if they are found with influenza-like symptoms,” said an official.
Though airports in Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok are screening passengers, airlines are taking steps to ensure that passengers and crew are safe. Flights from the infected destinations are being fumigated and crew has been told to watch for those who show signs of fever. Chennai has direct flight links to Hong Kong and Japan where cases of the virus have been detected. There are around seven flights on weekdays and nine flights on weekends between Chennai and Singapore. But all passengers from Singapore flights are not screened.
There is a general instruction to look out for passengers who have visited infected areas in China.
IndiGo airlines, which operates flights to Chengdu and Guangzhou, said, “Our crew are taking appropriate precautions. There have been no cases reported yet in our Chinese points, which are around 1,000 km from Wuhan, nor indeed in India. We are in close touch with government authorities and will advise about any alterations to our schedule as and when they occur. Meantime, we have thousands of forward bookings and are serving those customers as normal.”
Airports Authority of India (AAI) has already instructed airlines to make inflight announcements to spread awareness. Notice boards have been set up to instruct passengers who do not have symptoms on arrival to report to district health authorities if they develop cold or fever within 28days of arrival.
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