Measles outbreak in Japan and Taiwan

Thousands quarantined due to disease, while tourists cancel visits

Singapore: An outbreak of measles in Japan and Taiwan has put thousands of people in quarantine and forced tourists to put off visits to southern Japan, media reports said.

More than 3,500 people in the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung have been quarantined and are being monitored by the island’s health authorities after coming into contact with the infected crew of budget carrier Tigerair Taiwan, Taiwanese media reported.

Another 980 in Taipei are being monitored following an outbreak at a major hospital.

The outbreak has been traced back to a 30-year-old male flight attendant with Tigerair Taiwan.

He caught the highly contagious disease in Thailand last month and was confirmed to be infected on March 29.

But by then he had infected two other cabin crew members during a Tigerair Taiwan flight to Japan.

The two – a 34-year-old man and a 28-year-old woman – continued working until they fell seriously ill and were diagnosed with measles in early April.

So far, at least 22 people in Taiwan have been confirmed to have the highly contagious disease, which causes high fever and rashes.

It can be fatal for infants and toddlers, and may result in miscarriage.

The disease has since spread to Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture which is a popular tourism destination among Taiwanese, and appeared to be heading north, with cases confirmed in Nagoya.

Reports citing the Okinawa Prefectural Government said a Taiwanese traveller in his 30s had brought measles to the prefecture last month.

As of April 20, a total of 67 patients were confirmed to have contracted the disease. reported Japanese media.

They included people who came in contact with the tourist, as well as their family members and colleagues.

Some schools in Okinawa have cancelled classes.

The outbreak could not have happened at a worse time for local tourism. More than 170 people have cancelled trips to Okinawa ahead of the spring holiday season, public broadcaster NHK reported.

The prefectural government is receiving about 30 inquiries a day from people and travel agencies about where infections are ram- pant and how to protect against the virus, it added.

The prefectural government also plans to hold an emergency meeting of all its division chiefs, NHK said.

The disease has been detected in the central city of Nagoya, where a resident who had visited Okinawa was diagnosed on April 11.

A nurse at a local hospital was confirmed to be infected 10 days later.

Japan’s health ministry is urging the public to get vaccinated ahead of the country’s Golden Week travel peak next week. — The Straits Times/Asia News Network