Where to watch for international cases of H7N9

Laidback Al · Apr 5, 2013

Where to watch for international cases of H7N9

From Wikipedia . . . .

The main international airport in Shanghai is Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG) which handles more than 60 million travelers a year. The airport is the main hub for China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai Airlines, and a major international hub for Air China. It is also the hub for privately owned Juneyao Airlines and Spring Airlines. It is a major Asian-Pacific cargo hub for UPS and DHL. It the third busiest airport in mainland China and the 20th busiest in the world. As of December 2011, Pudong Airport hosted 87 airlines serving 194 destinations. (link)

If an international air traveler carries H7N9 out of China it may first be recorded in one of the major cities noted on the map below (map from Wikimedia).

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Catbird · Apr 5, 2013

Re: Where to watch for international cases of H7N9

Great info!

Just a couple of additional note on travelers. This past week was the Qingming Festival (Tomb Sweeping Day, see Wiki). It's a traditional holiday celebrating the arrival of spring, as well as a day for family to visit, clean and decorate the graves of their ancestors.

The holiday is celebrated by residents of Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau - many of whom travel to mainland China in order to be with family. Those who did go are now in the process of returning, or have just returned.

Also, Taiwan's 3 major airlines, China Airlines, EVA Air and Revival Airlines, have all announced enhanced procedures in response to the outbreak. They are implementing special disinfection operations, and have eliminated or changed almost all poultry products served in on-board meals. All planes are also being stocked with face masks. For more,see xhttp://hk.huaxia.com/xw/twxw/2013/04/3279453.html

AlaskaDenise · Apr 5, 2013

Re: Where to watch for international cases of H7N9

Anchorage is also a major cargo hub for flights to China. UPS and FedEx have recently expanded their sorting facility here to accomodate that increase in Asian traffic. I just checked today's flight status stats, and there are 7 departures and 9 arrivals for China.

.

jflorida · Apr 5, 2013

Re: Where to watch for international cases of H7N9

I guess North Korea is a big question mark. Conditions there now seem to be rather severe from reports ( http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/03/22/2013032200809.html ) but god only knows the details of what has been or is occurring there now.

While not "international" its probably important to also note there are massings of Chinese troops near the NK border in what are probably ideal conditions for the spread of disease :

Chinese Troops Mass Along Border with N.Korea [ http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/04/04/2013040401314.html ]

"Large groups of soldiers were seen on the streets in Ji'an, a city in Jilin, amid reports that the [Army] had been ordered to combat readiness status," the daily added. "Heavy armored vehicles, including tanks and armored personnel carriers, were reported moving near the Yalu [Apnok] River that separates China from North Korea."

Also a post from here in 2006 has some nice illustrations of general migration flyways which could be an issue I guess: Migration Flyways [ http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=147 ]. And here is a interesting referenced article on the issue with respect to flu (mostly H5N1) Migratory Connectivity [ http://www.environment.ucla.edu/CTR/research/Inf-Diseases/migratory_connectivity.html ]

Where to watch for international cases of H7N9

Laidback Al

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