Mayday for flight 1647
TRINIDAD EXPRESS – With the incubation period officially over as of yesterday, the Ministry of Health is feverishly trying to contact several passengers from American Airlines flight 1647 who have yet to call them.

As the Express understands, of the 179 passengers on the plane that left Miami for Piarco International Airport on 30 May, 29 of them have not called and the Ministry is concerned that they may be infected and can be spreading the Influenza A/H1N1 virus even if they do not have flu-like symptoms.

The 12 members of the crew were also screened and they showed no symptoms of the virus.

Recently, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that in most cases, the incubation period for swine influenza appears to range between two days and a week.

However, the precise swine influenza incubation period is still disputed, and according to Chief Medical Officer at the Ministry, Dr Anton Cumberbatch, the sensible thing to do is to keep a close watch on symptoms for roughly a week, and up to ten days to be safe.

Nevertheless, in a statement issued by the Ministry yesterday, they called on these people and others, who may have been in contact with any passengers or the 12-member staff on the plane, to contact Ministry officials through the Ministry’s 24-hour H1N1 hotline at 800-WELL (9355).

In addition to that, the Ministry is also requesting that all passengers who were on flight AA 1647 stay at home and avoid mass gatherings until clearance has been issued as a precautionary measure taken in light of the fact that both cases of H1N1 have been detected on that flight.

In fact, as the Express understands, both passengers who tested positive for the virus were travelling first class.

According to the statement, however, passengers ought not to be overly concerned, as upon contact with the Ministry, all necessary procedures will be followed to ensure their well-being and the containment of the virus.

The two women are under observation at their respective homes and were prescribed Tamiflu medication to strengthen their immune systems.

Nevertheless, they are being urged to strictly follow the recommendations of the Ministry and assist in the Ministry’s efforts to contain the virus in this country.

The Ministry continues to actively contact and screen all passengers on the aforementioned flight; so far there is no indication that anyone else has been infected.

However, they have promised to keep the public updated on any new developments because it will take “a national effort to contain the spread of this highly contagious respiratory virus”.