Live animal markets ‘are a recipe for disaster’ in fight against new diseases
fellow at the Centre for Global Development, told the Daily Telegraph that the lockdown may push some people to attempt to escape to avoid being trapped, as witnessed during the Ebola outbreak in Africa.
He added: ‘‘Even in China I suspect it is going to be very difficult to rigorously enforce. You are talking about cordoning off a city of the size of New York – it is inconceivable. It remains to be seen how coercive this enforcement will prove to be.’’
To control a 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, known as Sars, Beijing shut all schools for a fortnight and quarantined more than 4000 individuals – but stopped short of widespread travel shutdowns.
In Wuhan, residents voiced concerns about shortages of food and disinfectant. ‘‘We are feeling as though it is the end of the world,’’ said one resident on social media.
Despite the lockdown, some remained unperturbed and ready to celebrate the Lunar New Year holiday. ‘‘No, I am not afraid,’’ said Ms Xu, 43, a seafood vendor at the market thought to be the source of the virus outbreak. ‘‘I was not even afraid of Sars.’’
Chinese authorities have closed the market, handing out cash subsidies to merchants to offset a loss in revenue.
According to the South China Morning Post, the market advertised live foxes, crocodiles, wolf puppies, salamanders, snakes, rats, peacocks, porcupines and koalas.
Identifying the source could go a long way in helping authorities devise a more robust public health response, said Chen Xi, a professor at the Yale School of Public Health.
‘‘If you don’t know this, you don’t know why the virus spread,’’ said Chen.
Governments and health officials elsewhere in the world have remained on high alert as they rushed to increase measures to protect their citizens, including screening passengers arriving from China.
Taiwan’s Centre for Disease Control has set up an epidemic command centre, and said it would make millions of protective masks available.
In Hong Kong, where 55 patients are under isolation, pan-democracy legislators, all wearing face masks, staged a protest to criticise the government for its slow handling of the crisis.
Doctors were reportedly drawing lots to decide who will stay in isolation wards to treat patients.
– Telegraph Group
‘‘Even in China I suspect it is going to be very difficult to rigorously enforce. You are talking about cordoning off a city of the size of New York – it is inconceivable. It remains to be seen how coercive this enforcement will prove to be.’’
– Telegraph Group