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An Eerie Silence in the Eye of Bird Flu's Storm
Entry 19 of 45 | show all | print this entry |
I feel like I have been watching a train hurling in slow motion toward a massive collision for the last 10-12 days, or like I have been riding in the stilled eye of a storm, yet can see the ferocity of the winds, rain and storm surge that are a few feet from slamming into shore.
Bird flu is spreading rapidly in many rural districts of West Bengal. But there is the strangest disconnect here between the fact and realization of what is happening. Everything has slowed to an almost infinite, timeless space and is engulfed in an eerie silence and normality. I see what feels like an inevitable, looming calamity, but people are going on with their daily lives, utterly oblivious.
Birds started dying in rural districts in unusual numbers with telltale symptoms of bird flu back on December 21st. The unusual and escalating numbers of deaths didn't get reported from the district officials to the state, though, until January 4th. The state first reported them to the national government and in the newspapers on January 11th. On January 15th the first test results confirmed an outbreak of bird flu.
With the speed, efficiency and intelligence of a drugged sloth, the state government has perfectly demonstrated its utter incompetence and inability to respond. Villagers were not educated about the dangers of the disease, have continued to eat, handle sick and dead animals, further exposing themselves and their children to the disease. They have smuggled poultry out of their districts, continue throwing dead birds into rivers and canals, and have refused to hand over birds to the few culling teams that are functioning until they are paid. Villagers have severely beaten one culling team (they had to be hospitalized) and threatened others. A number of culling teams refused to go to work in certain areas, demanding police protection, further slowing response. A number of photos of culling operations show the culling team in their hazmat gear slaughtering chickens with unprotected villagers only feet away (exposure can occur through air particulates). Other photos show children less than 2 feet away from dead birds. Four days ago, a small item appeared on page 3, that a bird seller in Kolkata's Kalighat area had six birds die with bird flu symptoms and many other birds of his were sick. "I'm taking all of the precautions," the bird seller stated. But nothing has appeared in the way of follow up to say whether the birds were tested, or what the results were. (Lab tests have to be flown to Delhi, take days to process).
And only today has the first mention appeared anywhere about testing of people exposed to, or having symptoms of, the disease. 5 villagers have all the symptoms who handled dead birds in one district with all the symptoms have been tested. (How's that for rising to a challenge.) Another 600 villagers in one area are sick...but no specifics on whether they are actually being tested for the disease. It is simply not credible that, given the extent of continued human exposure, no human beings have contracted the disease.
Today, the Chief Minister of West Bengal is quoted as saying the disease "has been contained" at the same time that new districts surrounding Kolkata reporting new outbreaks.
In Reuters, India, 1 hour ago, Bengali state health services director, Sanchita Bakshi, was quoted: "There is every chance of the virus spiralling out of hand if it's too late." IF?!!? This hornet's nest was shattered weeks ago! This monkey is out of its cage.
From where I sit, everyone is still damn near comatose with denial. It is difficult to imagine a more perfect storm of circumstances converging for the virus to mutate to a capacity for human-to-human contagion. If it miraculously doesn't (please join me in praying for that), each day new districts are being affected, thousands more are losing their livelihoods and being exposed to bird-to-human contagion. And hundreds of thousands of villagers travel into Kolkata every day by train to work in this city of 15-20 million people.
I just can't see how this won't be an epidemic. It seems to me that, given the levels and frequency of exposure and the lack of governmental capacity to respond, the best we may be able to hope for is a miracle of divine grace in keeping it at bird-to-human contagion.
Latest Comments (4)
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Re: Perfect Storm in many countries, gramma. (reply)
Jan 28, 2008 00:00 EST by globalgramma
Thank you for your very balanced and thoughtful, seemingly authoritative comment. I would love to know more about your personal knowledge and experience, if you would kindly share it with me.
I have some questions for you. I have so many questions, a few very significant ones, but nowhere to locate real, authoritative answers. Please suggest sources if you have them:
If the ... show all
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Perfect Storm in many countries, gramma. (reply)
Jan 27, 2008 21:03 EST by oldbirdfluhand
Thanks so much for posting your experiences in Kolkata.
Although you are in the eye of one bird flu storm (W. Bengal's), I think you are a relative newbie at following avian influenza.
The 'Perfect Storm' you describe has existed, off and on, in several other places: Indonesia (to the greatest extent and persistently), Egypt, Bangladesh (for at least a year), Vietnam (off and on)... show all
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Re: Well written. It appeared to be professional. (reply)
Jan 26, 2008 11:53 EST by globalgramma
The problem in West Bengal is that the government is so wholly corrupt and incompetent, there is no way the epidemic will be able to be adequately addressed. A good and effective government would be stretched to its limit in this. As more dimensions of the crisis unfold, it is like watching a category 5 funnel cloud take shape. I am afraid we are well past the possibility of any containment.show all
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Well written. It appeared to be professional. (reply)
Jan 26, 2008 09:12 EST by joeneubarth
Thanks for giving us an on sight view of the problems in the area. Peasants in most countries are poorly educated. Lack of compliance could lead to an epidemic in the region, and from that epidemic the H5N1 virus can mutate into a human pandemic virus. Frightening!
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