Living Virally- It Ain't My First Quarantine - Part 2

Living Virally, Episode 1, Part 2

Escaping from Beijing, my allergy symptoms were apparent but mild. Getting off the plane in Seoul, we had to walk through a mine field of thermal imagers looking for anyone with a fever. With no fever and my allergy symptoms having somewhat abated during the flight, we cleared customs with out any problems.

April 2, 2003: China reports 361 new cases of SARS for the month of March; the total number of cases in Guangdong province rises to 1,153.

Npr.com - Time Line SARS 2003

Met by our son we were loaded onto a bus for Pyeongtaek, the city he was working in and about an hours drive south of Seoul. Spring was in full bloom here. Every tree and bush seemed to be in flower. Minutes after getting off the bus in Pyeongtaek my allergies started to reintroduce themselves with a vengeance.

By our second day in Korea, my symptoms had bloomed.  When ever we went outside, my runny nose got runnier, my eyes started to continuously emit a gritty gunk, the sneezes got louder and more frequent while my coughs more phlegmy. My memories of our time in Korea are a bit fuzzy due to my allergies but also I believe in some part due to the Korean version of allergy medicines as “No doze” medicine was not an option. What I do remember is seeing lots of lots of temples.

I mean lots of temples.

April 4, 2003: WHO officials report a total of 2,353 probable SARS cases, 84 of them fatal, in 16 countries.

 npr.com - Time Line SARS 2003

On one fuzzy trip, we visited the folk village of Yongin.  I remember that it seemed to be populated with living historical characters. Perhaps it was the allergy medicine talking.

I vaguely remember Nonie and me taking an over-night holiday packed train to the coastal city of Gyeongju.  Gyeongju was home to the Silla Dynasty. They ruled most of the Korean peninsula for 1,000 years, from 95 BC to 935 AD. 

 Arriving at the 5:00 AM we killed (no pun intended) a few hours and catching some zzzz’s in a park containing the burial mounds of a number Silla kings and their family.  The city and surrounding areas are littered with these mounds.

April 4: The number of suspected U.S. SARS cases was 115; reported from 29 states. There were no deaths among these suspect cases of SARS in the United States.

npr.com – Time Line SARS 2003

Near Gyeongju, is the temple of Bulguska with a small but famous statue of Buddha tucked neatly into a small grotto.  We arrived during a holiday weekend so the place was packed. As there was a 4 kilometre walk into the grotto, shuttle buses were provided but with about a 2 hour wait, we hoofed it in beating the shuttle bus by 10 minutes.

There was a larger Buddha on the grounds that I think winked at me. Again, perhaps a side affect of the allergy medicine.

April 6, 2003: Canadian health officials report the number of suspected and probable SARS cases in that nation has surpassed 130, including nine deaths.

npr.com – Time Line SARS 2003

Nonie spent a day with our son visiting the Gyeongbok Palace, just north of downtown Seoul and a short ballistic missile shot from the North Korean Border. Located in a huge park full of green stuff, I opted to stay home and rest my nasal passages.  

We spent our last few days in Korea exploring Seoul and shopping.  With less greenery in the City, my symptoms started to lessen their grip. We did spend quite a few hours in giant climate controlled malls which may have also helped.

Leaving Seoul, we again had to tiptoe through a field of thermal scanners at the airport to ensure that anyone with a temperature was not getting into the airport or onto a plane.  During the flight, we were informed that upon landing in Vancouver, we would be interviewed and our temperatures taken.  Anyone exhibiting symptoms could be quarantined.

Photo: The Straight Times

We arrived into YVR at around 6:00 AM with a small expectation that I might be quarantined. As we exited the plane and were being herded to the departure area we passed through several unmanned thermal scanners with empty tables and chairs and SARS signage. It seems that the SARS checkpoint didn't open till 8 AM.  

Table 1. Number of passengers detected with an elevated temperature by thermal image scanner and suspected of SARS, Vancouver International and Pearson Airports, May to November 2003

Airport	Pearson	Vancouver	Total
No. of passengers scanned	3,920,407	649,352	4,569,759
No. of passengers with an elevated temperature by scanner	1,365 (0.035%)	70 (0.011%)	1,435 (0.031%)
No. of passengers with SARS	0	0	0

https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/reports-publications/canada-communicable-disease-report-ccdr/monthly-issue/2004-30/thermal-image-scanners-detect-fever-airline-passengers-vancouver-toronto-2003.html

We were met at the airport by Nonie’s mom. No hugs or kisses, we kept our distance till she dropped us off at Nonie’s sister home where we had stored our car. No stopping there, we jumped in the car and drove straight home with just a stop for gas and a pee.

April 14: Researchers in Canada announce they sequenced the genome for the coronavirus suspected to cause SARS.

cnn.com – Time Line SARS 2003

Spring was in full bloom at home when we arrived and while mild my symptoms continued but now with the addition of a low grade fever. This elicited a call to the local public health clinic for some advice. An hour later a fully gowned public health nurse showed up at our door. After a short interview, she said she would get back to us but that for the time being we would need to stay home.

She left us with a handful of surgical masks that Nonie and I were to wear while we were in the same room with each other. A few hours later she called and had arranged a visit to my GP for a full check-up. I was to go to her office at the end of the day when their were no longer any patients around. I was to make sure  to wear a mask at all times. Arriving, I was met outside by the receptionist who asked me to wait in my car as there were still patients inside.  Once inside I was greeted by my GP fully gowned and masked. I received a full check up then she made a call to Public Health to discuss her findings. 

I was told to go to the hospital for a chest x-ray. Arriving at the front entrance, I was met by two security guards who recognized me as the possible SARS case by the surgical mask on my face. They escorted me through the hospital corridors to x-ray, clearing people out of the way as we moved along.  I was again met by a technician fully gowned and masked. I felt so special. X-ray complete, I was escorted off the premises.

My 15 minutes of fame was fleeting. Three days later we received a call to say that I was not suffering from SARS and we could resume our daily lives. Despite my clean bill of health, work was not much interested in seeing me for the next week, so we enjoyed an extended stay-cation. 

April 29, 2003: The WHO removes its warning against all but essential travel to Toronto. Travel advisories remain in effect for Hong Kong, Beijing and two provinces in China.

May 29, 2003: Toronto reports a second outbreak.

July 2003: WHO officials consider the SARS threat under control and lift all travel advisories. To date, 8,099 people in 32 countries have been infected, with 744 of those cases fatal. No new cases have been reported since July.

npr.com – Time Line SARS 2003