The OR Tambo International Airport has outlined the processes that arriving international passengers must go through as cases of the deadly Coronavirus rise across the globe.
Over 300 people are now known to have died in China from the virus with the total number of cases in the country being 14300. About 100 cases have been reported outside China including in the UK, US, Russia, Germany, Australia, Botswana and Namibia. The first confirmed fatal case outside China was announced in the Philippines on Sunday.
There is no cure for the virus which causes a severe acute respiratory infection. OR Tambo Port health official, Thandeka Nsele, describes the screening process underway at the airport.
“We have identified flights coming directly from China and other many connecting flights here. We then meet those flights to do screenings. The thermo-scanner is pointed at them, at least a meter away, if their temperature is high it turns red and that will then alert the operator that there is something wrong. We are checking for high temperatures here. We will then get their travel history information. Have these people been anywhere from China and have they come into contact with someone from China? There are specific questions we will then ask them, and should we feel that it is in line with the case definition, the case is referred to the NICD for their advice,” says Nsele.
