Federal authorities have swiftly mobilized equipment and personnel used by Nigeria to successfully battle the spread of Ebola virus in 2014 and have deployed them to screen passengers at our local and international airports, following recent news of the outbreak of deadly diseases in many countries.
A statement signed by spokesperson of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, specifically mentioned “a deadly virus known as coronavirus” which broke out in China, has killed 30 persons and is feared to be spreading to neighboring countries such as Japan, Thailand and South Korea.
Fearing that returning passengers were at risk, she said that thermal scanners which monitor body temperatures of passengers and take their pictures have been activated to track and isolate passengers who show signs of high temperature.
FAAN and the Federal Ministry of Health, she said, have tested the adequacy of the medical equipment and process at the airports and confirmed them adequate to “prevent the importation of the viruses through the airports.”
“Passengers are therefore advised to submit themselves for routine quarantine tests whenever they are asked to,” she said.
The decision to act comes on the heels of the announcement that a case of coronavirus has been confirmed the United States.
Affected is a young man in his 30s who returned to his country from the Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak in China.
The man has been quarantined at the Carter Evans Hospital in Everett, Washington.
