The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported three new cases of COVID-19, including two airline employees.
The two flew on the same plane as a Taiwanese pilot who was confirmed to have COVID-19 on Friday, indicating a cluster of infections in the flight cabin, the CECC said.
The pilot, case No. 760 in the nation, flew to the US on Dec. 12, returned on Wednesday, began showing symptoms during quarantine at the airline’s dormitory and tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday, said Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), the CECC’s spokesman.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport
One of the new cases, No. 765, is a New Zealander in his 60s who flew to the US on Nov. 29, returned to Taiwan on Dec. 4 and flew to the US again on the same flight with case No. 760 on Dec. 12, during which he was reportedly coughing, Chuang said.
He returned to Taiwan on Tuesday and had been under home quarantine, but after case No. 760 was confirmed, he was tested the same day, and the result came back positive yesterday, Chuang said.
The man also tested positive for antibodies against COVID-19, he added.
Case No. 766 is a Japanese man in his 20s who flew to the US on Dec. 5, returned to Taiwan on Dec. 7, flew to the US again on the same flight with case Nos. 760 and 765 on Dec. 12, and returned to Taiwan on Tuesday.
On Thursday, he reported that he was coughing and was tested on Friday, Chuang said, adding that he developed diarrhea on Saturday and his test result came back positive yesterday, but an antibody test came back negative.
The three cases are likely a cluster of infections that occurred within the airplane cabin, Chuang said, adding that case No. 765 is most likely to be the source, as he has a higher cycle threshold value (CT value) of 24.9 and has developed antibodies against COVID-19.
The CT values of cases 766 and 760 were 15.2 and 17 respectively, he said.
A higher CT value indicates lower viral load and a lower risk of infectivity.
Case No. 765 first flew to the US on Nov. 29 and returned to Taiwan on Dec. 4, so if he contracted the disease during the period, he would still be infectious during the flight on Dec. 12, Chuang said, adding that his colleagues reported that he had been coughing without a mask during the flight.
The CECC found that case No. 765 left the airline dormitory during his rest days from Dec. 8 to Dec. 11, so contact tracing personnel are examining his iPad to find out where he was during the period.
Asked if the Taiwanese airline is at fault for letting crew members with symptoms work in a plane without wearing a mask, Chuang said case No. 765 said he did not have any symptoms, but was reported to be coughing, so the center would ask the Civil Aeronautics Administration and the airline to investigate and clarify the situation.
The third new case reported yesterday is an Indonesian man in his 40s, who came to Taiwan for work on Dec. 3 and had provided a negative polymerase chain reaction test result from within three days before departing.
He did not show any symptoms in Taiwan, Chuang said.
The shipping service company he works for paid for a COVID-19 test when his quarantine ended on Friday and the result came back positive yesterday, he said.
Eight crew members who work on the same ship have been placed under home isolation, he added.
Taiwan has arranged for about 8 million barrels of crude oil, or about one-third of its monthly needs, to be shipped from the Red Sea this month to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and ease domestic supply pressures, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) said yesterday. The state-run oil company has worked with Middle Eastern suppliers to secure routes other than the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas typically passes, CPC chairman Fang Jeng-zen (方振仁) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. Suppliers in Saudi Arabia have indicated they
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
CCP ‘PAWN’? Beijing could use the KMT chairwoman’s visit to signal to the world that many people in Taiwan support the ‘one China’ principle, an academic said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday arrived in China for a “peace” mission and potential meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), while a Taiwanese minister detailed the number of Chinese warships currently deployed around the nation. Cheng is visiting at a time of increased Chinese military pressure on Taiwan, as the opposition-dominated Legislative Yuan stalls a government plan for US$40 billion in extra defense spending. Speaking to reporters before going to the airport, Cheng said she was going on a “historic journey for peace,” but added that some people felt uneasy about her trip. “If you truly love Taiwan,
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
RSS