Sars suspicions force wait on Air New Zealand plane

An Air New Zealand flight from Hong Kong was briefly detained in Auckland yesterday after a passenger was suspected of having Sars symptoms.

Spokesman Richard Becht said cabin crew became aware the passenger was displaying "suspected symptoms" of Sars - severe acute respiratory syndrome - during the flight.

He was unable to say how long the passengers had to wait in the plane.

Health officials gave the passenger the all-clear, and the flight disembarked at Auckland International Airport.

An Auckland medical officer of health, Dr Greg Simmons, said the plane was not "quarantined", as health authorities did not have protocols to implement such measures.

"The passengers would have been free to go as far as we were concerned, but as I understand it, there were no air bridges available at the time."



Even if the patient had been suspected of carrying Sars, the health authorities would still have had no power to quarantine other passengers, he said.

"In that case, we would take the details of the passengers in the rows fore and aft and monitor them for symptoms."

A woman with suspected Sars who is in an isolation ward at Hawkes Bay Hospital was in a stable condition yesterday.

She was admitted to hospital on Tuesday after returning from China.

Hospital spokeswoman Karalyn van Deursen said staff were paying scrupulous attention to quarantine procedures.

Those in direct contact with the patient wore goggles, masks, gowns and paper shoes over their footwear.

The woman had noticed the symptoms herself and phoned a GP. She fitted the Sars profile - high fever, dry cough and having travelled in a Sars-infected area - and was admitted to hospital.

It may be a fortnight before the diagnosis can be confirmed or discounted as there is not yet a test for the deadly virus.

The other 34 people in the woman's China tour group have shown no Sars symptoms, although some have quarantined themselves as a precaution.

In China, the New Zealander admitted to hospital in Xi'an last Sunday with Sars symptoms while travelling is believed to be recovering. The 39-year-old lives in Britain.

With students returning to school in New Zealand on Monday after the holidays, some schools say they will ask pupils returning from Sars-affected countries to quarantine themselves.

This is despite the Education Ministry's advising educational institutions not to impose Sars quarantines, as it is a responsibility of health authorities.

But Madeleine East, principal of Farm Cove Intermediate in Pakuranga, said it was only prudent for schools with many overseas students to take precautions.

"With 600 kids, we have a lot to protect."

- NZPA