An emergency center was created on the Thai resort island of Phuket. Its creation was initiated by the Ministry of Health after more than 100 people fell ill with an unknown disease at once in three districts of the island.
The main symptom is severe diarrhea, and the main suspected culprit is a virus that got into the ice water or drinking water in general because of the rainy season problems. But this is not accurate: medical officials are afraid of a new post-Covid epidemic, and the unknown cause of the disease scares them.
Health authorities are investigating the cause of the outbreak and the center has been set up to manage the situation, “working closely with the provincial authorities throughout the investigation,” said Health Permanent Secretary Dr. Opas Karnkawinpong.
Residents and tourists were reassured by the expert – while the pathogen does not cause any particular concern, mostly only mild symptoms are observed – in addition to diarrhea, these include stomach cramps, vomiting, and low-grade fever. No deaths have been recorded yet. However, a Thai medical official added, it is imperative to ensure that sanitation is followed to prevent diarrhea from becoming a public health problem.
So far, the most likely culprit is dirty drinking water or ice water. However, nothing similar to an unknown pathogen has yet been detected in the inspected factories and plants for the production of drinking water and ice. Traditionally, tourists were urged to wash their hands, not eat in unverified places and avoid drinks with ice and cocktails in general.