FAAN Issues Travel Advisory as Deadly Chinese Coronavirus Spreads to 8 Countries

SWITZERLAND, JANUARY 23 – The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria(FAAN) has issued a travel advisory to Nigerians travelling outside the country as the death toll from the dangerous Chinese Coronavirus hits 17 with about 600 people infected worldwide.

China is in the midst of a public health crisis as a new strain of Coronavirus, from the family of viruses that gave rise to SARS, has swept the country. Officials said the nation was now at the most critical stage of prevention and control, especially as China prepares to celebrate the lunar new year on 25 January and hundreds of millions will crisscross the country. The Virus has now spread to 8 other countries including Taiwan, Japan, and Australia.

The coronavirus epidemic reached a dangerous stage on Wednesday with the first confirmed case in the United States.

Read the FAAN statement below:

In an effort to protect passengers from the epidemic ravaging some countries and to prevent the spread of such communicable diseases into Nigeria, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria hereby advises passengers and other airport users to comply with all quarantine procedures at the nation’s airports. All the equipment and personnel used in combating the deadly ebola virus in 2014 are still very much in place at the airports.

FAAN has always had thermal scanners in her airports that monitor temperature of passengers and capture their pictures. When passengers walk pass the scanner, it registers their temperature and If too high, they are pulled aside for observation.

Recently, a deadly virus known as CORONAVIRUS broke out in China and has since killed six people, with over 300 also reported to have been infected. The virus is highly communicable and has already spread to boarder countries like Japan, Thailand and South Korea.

The Authority, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health, have confirmed the adequacy of the facilities at the nation’s airports to prevent the importation of the virus through the airports.

Passengers are therefore advised to submit themselves for routine quarantine checks whenever they are asked to.

FAAN…. Committed to her core values of Safety, Security and Comfort. Henrietta Yakubu (Mrs.) General Manager, Corporate Affairs

Meanwhile, CNN writes on Thursday that health officials in China have confirmed a total of 581 confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus across 25 provinces as of mid-day Thursday, according to official statistics. Those figures do not include cases in the special administrative regions of Macao and Hong Kong or in the self-governing island of Taiwan.

Chinese National Health Commission said in a statement Thursday that as of the end of the day Wednesday:

• 5,897 people have been found to have had close contact with infected people
• 4,928 are undergoing medical observation
• 969 people have been discharged from medical observation
• 393 suspected cases were identified across 13 provinces, regions and municipalities
• 95 cases are being qualified as “severe”
• 17 people have died, all in Hubei province

On Wednesday alone:

• 257 suspected cases were identified across 13 provinces
• 131 new cases were confirmed across 24 provinces
• 8 people died in Hubei province, five men and three women

According to CNN, Chinese authorities have enforced a partial lockdown of transport in and out of Wuhan, where the outbreak started — disrupting travel plans for millions of people, just days before Lunar New Year. Wuhan “temporarily” closed its airport and railway stations on Thursday for departing passengers, and all public transport services are suspended until further notice.

The wearing of face masks is now mandatory in all public places in the city, including hotels, restaurants, parks, cafes, and shopping malls.