Legionella may hinder trips to Phuket

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Some of the winter holidaymakers who have booked their trips to Phuket through the Finnish travel operator Aurinkomatkat may have to cancel their vacation entirely or at least change their destination, as all hotels in Phuket are filled to capacity.
      All Finns resident in the Grand Tropicana Hotel in Phuket are being transferred to other accommodation, and the popular beach resort hotel will not be used until it has been satisfactorily demonstrated whether or not dangerous Legionella bacteria are hiding in its water and air-conditioning systems.
      It has been confirmed so far that four Nordic tourists aged 24 to 66 have contracted Legionnaires' disease after staying in the hotel.
     
In addition, a Finnish traveller who was resident at the hotel about a year ago evidently fell ill with the disease.
      Furthermore, another Finn with a high temperature who recently returned from Phuket was being examined on Wednesday, but it could not be established whether or not he had Legionnaires' disease, and he was released from the hospital.
      The water samples from the hotel have not been processed yet.
      So far Aurinkomatkat has found new accommodation for about 140 travellers of the 300 Finns who were staying at the Grand Tropicana Hotel at the beginning of the week. Efforts are being made to find another hotel also for the remaining residents, says Tuomo Meretniemi from Aurinkomakat.
     
New holidaymakers are flying from Finland to Phuket almost every day. All of them are contacted personally prior to their departure in order to negotiate the hotel situation, Meretniemi reports.
      Furthermore, Aurinkomatkat has sent letters to around 1,500 clients who have been resident in the hotel since November 20th, advising all persons who have fallen ill with fever of more than 38°C either during the trip or within 14 days after leaving the hotel to go to the doctor immediately. However, if the symptoms have already disappeared, there is no need to seek medical care.
     
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) monitors diseases contracted by the citizens of the European Union's member-states while travelling. The connection between the Legionella patients - the hotel in Phuket - was detected through the ECDC network. The centre also cooperates with the World Health Organisation WHO.
      On Thursday, epidemiologist Tran Minh Nhu Nguyen from the National Public Health Institute participated in a phone conference organized by the ECDC. It was stated that even though the water samples taken at the hotel proved negative, there is no knowing whether or not the disease was contracted at that hotel. Hence the situation will take weeks, the epidemiologist predicts.
     
However, there is no need to cancel any trips to Thailand because of the outbreak of Legionnaires' disease, the Norwegian authorities have assured citizens.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Nordic tourists acquire Legionnaires´ disease in Thailand (11.1.2007)

Links:
  European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)
  World Health Organization

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