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SARS vs Wuhan Virus - Reminisce about the good old days

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  1. #1

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    SARS vs Wuhan Virus - Reminisce about the good old days

    @shri since I know you were here during SARS, were there such drastic closures like this back then?


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    @MatthieuTofu - no. I think this is largely due to social media pressure.

    GeoExpat was around then .. search through the forums...

    Some random bits I remember.

    I recall travelling for seminars / launch events etc during those days. The Singaporeans were a bit worried with my presence and one even refused to share a taxi with me to the airport after an event in BKK. Interestingly there were 3-4 people on that flight back and the pilot thanked us for flying cathay... but the fuckers did not upgrade us to biz.

    I do remember a lot of fuss over Amoy Garden's quarantine... but no building lobbies were burnt.

    I don't think we really took any days off - wandered into work and sometimes wandered into customer's offices for meetings - no shaking hands.

    We could get into any restaurant we wanted and were welcomed!

    This was BIG news: Sars Affects Yuppies...

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  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by shri:
    @MatthieuTofu - no. I think this is largely due to social media pressure.
    some other differences, case zero was here in HK, SARS was completely novel, and was then spreading (relatively slowly) from Hong Kong, whereas the wuhan virus appears to be circulating much faster, and there was no real no panic to buy masks as we have a moment

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    there was no real no panic to buy masks as we have a moment
    I think there was some sort of shortage - or may be N95 was a new thing. I do recall getting a care package for our office, from Australia at that time.

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    yes, I remember that "N95" was the new thing for sars.

    one take away the government and HA still haven't learned the bitter lessons from SARS in my view


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    I traveled to Japan from the US in April, 2003, and was shunned for having been exposed to SARS upon my return. Because, yeah, HK and Japan are RIGHT NEXT DOOR to each other...


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    I didn't return home in 2003to Australia to visit the family for fear of bringing it with me . To everyones great relief as I recall !

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    During the 2009 H1N1 (Swine flu) outbreak we were trying to deliver a bunch of games and books ordered by relatives of tourists who were quarantined in the Metropark hotel. Took us a few attempts before we could find a courier brave enough attempt a delivery there.

    https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/...0905020021.htm

    Experience some deja vu - H1N1 thread

    Last edited by shri; 29-01-2020 at 06:57 PM.
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  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by MatthieuTofu:
    @shri since I know you were here during SARS, were there such drastic closures like this back then?
    There are a couple of differences

    1) Social Media
    2) HK Gov were trusted to be competent

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by MABinPengChau:
    I traveled to Japan from the US in April, 2003, and was shunned for having been exposed to SARS upon my return. Because, yeah, HK and Japan are RIGHT NEXT DOOR to each other...
    Well, the knowledge of world geography by average Americans is about as much as Trump's knowledge of the US constitution, in other words, not much. I dare say for many Americans, most of them consider Asia as a single indistinguishable and monolithic blob. Same goes for Africa and South America.
    Last edited by Coolboy; 29-01-2020 at 07:23 PM.

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