I was reading this week that Turkey is using thermal cameras in airports, scanning international travelers who enter the country as part of their entry/passport control procedures. The effort is to detect those infected with swine flu, whose feverish symptoms are easily recognizable in the camera.
Libertarian concerns aside, I think it's a neat idea for finding infected people, ensure that they are treated, and containing the spread of a deadly disease.
Similar cameras are in use at the Bulgarian and Greek border crossings.
A colleague traveled to London, over the weekend, and so I asked her about the entry procedure. As she explained, there are two lines for passport control, one for Turkish nationals and another for foreign nationals. The line for foreign nationals was apparently backed up for hours, because each individual entering through this path had to pass through one of the cameras. However, it is a lucky time for Turks. They don't have to deal with the uncomfortable wait, long lines, or the thermal cameras: the only people being scanned, before entry into Turkey, are those who do not possess a Turkish passport and ID card.
I can only speculate, but the logic must run something akin to: Turkish people are Muslims and Muslims don't eat pork. Thus, Turkish people can't have been exposed to swine flu.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
One of my colleagues has swine flu...
OK, we don't actually know for sure, because as I've explained before, having the shits can be part of the experience of living in Turkey.
His return to school this morning prompted a conversation, and then some internet research, to see if swine flu (domuz gribi in Turkish) has come to Turkey.
On May 4th, in the southern city of Antalya, a panic broke out following the announcement that a patient of Akdeniz University Medical Center had died from swine flu. The Health Department was quick to issue statements to calm the populace. The kinds of statements you would expect from the government were issued: "The deceased had not traveled abroad, and preliminary tests on the body have yielded no evidence of the H1N1 virus. An autopsy will be performed, but as yet there has been no death due to swine flu."
Turns out, they were wrong. Start panicking.
People in Istanbul began panicking about swine flu two days ago. I need to catch up! An American traveler brought the disease through the Ataturk Airport sometime last week, and separately, a Korean traveler did as well. While yesterday, two cases were reported in Kadikoy, a busy ferry stop on the Asian side of Istanbul. One can only assume that it is now everywhere.
Special thanks to Mr. MacDaniel for bringing this pandemic to the desk abutting my own.
His return to school this morning prompted a conversation, and then some internet research, to see if swine flu (domuz gribi in Turkish) has come to Turkey.
On May 4th, in the southern city of Antalya, a panic broke out following the announcement that a patient of Akdeniz University Medical Center had died from swine flu. The Health Department was quick to issue statements to calm the populace. The kinds of statements you would expect from the government were issued: "The deceased had not traveled abroad, and preliminary tests on the body have yielded no evidence of the H1N1 virus. An autopsy will be performed, but as yet there has been no death due to swine flu."
Turns out, they were wrong. Start panicking.
People in Istanbul began panicking about swine flu two days ago. I need to catch up! An American traveler brought the disease through the Ataturk Airport sometime last week, and separately, a Korean traveler did as well. While yesterday, two cases were reported in Kadikoy, a busy ferry stop on the Asian side of Istanbul. One can only assume that it is now everywhere.
Special thanks to Mr. MacDaniel for bringing this pandemic to the desk abutting my own.
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