Kalibo airport placed under watch
With the continued rise in the number of Influenza A (H1N1) infections worldwide, authorities will set up monitoring at the Kalibo International Airport to prevent the entry of the novel virus into the country.
They aim to keep the Philippines off the list of 21 countries already with human cases of the virus, formerly called swine flu.
Dr. Lino Gregorio of the Bureau of Quarantine told reporters yesterday that a Mandarin Airlines flight from Taipei, Taiwan is scheduled to arrive today, Wednesday morning, at the Kalibo International Airport.
Although Taiwan is not among the countries affected by the virus, Gregorio said they will still be handing out thermal strips to arriving passengers to check for influenza-like symptoms, particularly high fever.
Passengers will place these strips on their forehead upon arrival. If the strips change color, it means that the person has high temperatures, indicating fever.
He explained that they opted not to install thermal scanning devices because the terminal building is not airconditioned.
Because the building is not airconditioned, it is likely that passengers will be registering high temperatures on a thermal scan, even though they have no fever, Gregorio explained.
Another way of checking a person's temperature is to stick a probe into the ear, but this method is quite intrusive and inconvenient, Gregorio noted.
The local government of Kalibo earlier called on national authorities to install thermal scanning equipment at the airport because of the Influenza A (H1N1) pandemic.
According to Gregorio, there are four international flights to and from the airport every week—during Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The Kalibo International Airport is the only airport in Region VI servicing international flights.