Urgent warning as tourists at tropical hotspot are screened for killer Nipah bat virus with 75% fatality rate
TOURISTS travelling to Bali will be screened for a deadly virus, health bosses have announced.
Officials fear the country could face an outbreak of the killer disease — which is currently spreading in India, Bangladesh and the Philippines.
All travellers, including Brits, will have their temperatures checked at airports when arriving in the Indonesian province over fears around the Nipah virus that is spread by bats.
People coming in from affected areas with any symptoms, including a raised temperature or chest infection, will be taken to hospital immediately to be checked.
I Nyoman Gee Anom, Bali’s chief health officer, told the : “In accordance with directions from the Ministry of Health we must be alert to the threat of the Nipah virus.
“At the airport there is a temperature detection device. If a tourist’s temperature is found to be above normal, it will be followed up with an interview.”
Read more on global health
Nipah virus causes an infection that attacks the brain and can cause deadly encephalitis — brain swelling.
It is spread by fruit bats, also known as flying foxes, pigs and humans, and is most prevalent in India and Bangladesh normally.
Symptoms include fever, breathing difficulties, headaches, a sore throat and vomiting.
There are currently no treatments or vaccines for the virus, which kills up to 75 per cent of people it infects.
Most read in Health
The latest outbreak is mostly affecting Kerala in India, where two people have died.
No cases have yet been spotted in Bali, but officials are preparing a response plan if the worst should happen.
Anom said: “Especially for Nipah virus, a team of neurologists, surgeons, and so on have been prepared because the virus can attack the brain.
“We have to be careful because many Indian tourists go to Bali. I’m afraid because there is a certain incubation period, maybe you don’t have a fever at the airport.”
Around 28,000 Brits travelled to Bali in August, the fifth highest influx from any country.
Some 13 UK tourists were booted out the country in September because of problem behaviour, under a new crackdown on westerners breaching the country’s rules.
The Foreign Office does not currently have any new warnings in place about Brits travelling to Bali.
The World Health Organization has not confirmed any new cases in Kerala since September 15.