As the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak continues, the Department of Health (DOH) yesterday issued an emergency warning to passengers who had taken two Air China flights, urging them to contact the health authorities immediately if they show any symptoms of SARS, Chinese-language media reported yesterday.
According to the DOH's warning, those who boarded Air China's CA112 flight from Hong Kong to Beijing on March 15 -- as well as those who boarded Air China's CA115 flight from Beijing to Hong Kong on March 19 -- should contact the health authorities at 0800-024582 if they show any symptoms of pneumonia.
Chen Tsai-ching (
According to Chen, the tourists were infected by a 73-year-old Chinese man who was also on the CA112 plane on March 15. The elderly man from Beijing reportedly visited a friend at the Prince of Wales Hospital during his stay in Hong Kong.
Nine of the 35 tourists later started to show symptoms of SARS -- an atypical form of pneumonia. The tourists returned to Hong Kong last Wednesday.
Chen also said that the DOH does not really know how many Taiwanese passengers were on those two flights, because Air China did not publish the passenger lists of the flights.
He urged those who boarded the two flights to contact the DOH immediately if they start to show evidence of a cough or fever.
The Central News Agency reported yesterday that five Taiwanese people who boarded the CA112 plane are currently being kept in the isolation ward of National Taiwan University Hospital after showing symptoms which could indicate SARS.
In related news, a Taipei resident, Ho Kuo-lung (
The younger Ho said that his brother suffered from a serious headache but had not shown any SARS symptoms.
China Airlines insisted that Ho needs to first get approval from a doctor in order to board the plane, and that -- according to the WHO regulations -- the company had to prevent him from boarding.
As of Monday, Taiwan had 28 suspected cases of SARS, with six of them being called "probable."
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
An exhibition celebrating Taiwan and Japan’s comic culture opened on Saturday in Taichung, featuring a section that explores Taiwanese reproductions of Japanese comics from when martial law limited Japanese representation. “A Century of Manga Culture: An Encounter of Taiwan and Japan’s Youth” held its Taiwan opening ceremony at Taichung’s National Taiwan Museum of Comics after an initial one-month run in Japan’s Kyoto International Manga Museum between May 24 and June 24. Much like the Kyoto exhibition, the show mainly celebrates the comic connection between Taiwan and Japan through late Taiwanese comic book
RSS