SARS suspect's firm takes no precautions
SARS suspect's firm takes no precautions
Multa Fidrus and Moch N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang/Jakarta
The government has declared that a British national who worked in
Tangerang, Banten, was probably infected by the Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). But it was business as usual at the
company where he worked as the management and the workers did not
seem to be taking any precautions against contracting the virus.
The British man is an executive of PT Sandrafine Garment
factory that produces shirts under the brandnames of Levis,
Rocker and Christoper. It is located on Jl. Siliwangi, in
Jatiuwung district, Tangerang municipality.
All workers in the production section are obliged to use
masks, but this has nothing to do with protecting themselves
against SARS. The wearing of masks is a standard procedure
implemented long before the disease came to public attention.
When The Jakarta Post visited the factory compound on
Wednesday, none of the workers showed any sign of fears of SARS.
Some of them even took off their masks as they did not feel
comfortable wearing them in such hot weather.
One of the factory's 2,000 workers told the Post that the
British man was about 40 years old and worked as one of
production managers in the factory.
"He had been to Singapore for a week, but when he returned
(earlier this month), he complained of flu-like symptoms and was
directly rushed to Siloam Gleneagles Hospital in Karawaci,"
he said.
He said that the factory manager usually had close contact
with management staff members and supervisors in the factory.
Asmailus, the company human resource development manager,
could not be reached for comment.
The British man is the only patient with probable SARS here.
He was transferred from Siloam Gleneagles Hospital to the
Sulianti Saroso Infectious Diseases Hospital in Sunter, North
Jakarta, on April 9 and is still being treated there.
According to an official source, the man had traveled to Hong
Kong and Singapore, before returning to Jakarta on April 2. The
government, however, had complained that the patient was not
cooperative as he, for example, refused to mention the flight he
took.
On Wednesday, Tjandra Yoga, head of the government
verification team said there were a total of three suspected SARS
cases and one probable SARS case in Indonesia.
One new suspected SARS patient, an Indonesian, had frequented
Thailand and Singapore and was being treated at Sulianto Saroso
Hospital, Tjandra said.
He also promised to bring the problem of the British man with
probable SARS as well as his company to the daily meeting of the
investigating team.
Meanwhile chief of Tangerang municipal health agency Nuriman
Machyudin refused to provide any information about the issue. He
told the Post on Wednesday that he was still tracking down the
identity of the British man.