U-Tapao Airport deploys thermoscanners to tackle coronavirus
The director of U-Tapao Airport said on Tuesday (January 28) that the airport is following the government’s order to make the passenger screening process more stringent, especially for Chinese tourists entering Thailand during Chinese New Year, to prevent the spreading of the new coronavirus.
The virus originated from Wuhan city in China.
“We have deployed two handheld thermoscanners at inbound passenger checkpoints and added two more at outbound checkpoints as a precaution,” airport director Vice Admiral Kritphol Rianglekjamnong said. “Since the new coronavirus could have an incubation period of up to 14 days, it is possible that infected foreign tourists will enter Thailand without showing any symptoms. We want to make sure that they are all free of the virus when they leave the airport.”
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Kritphol further added that the thermoscanners will be operated and monitored by airport staff with help from officials of the Ministry of Public Health who are stationed at the emergency medical centre at the airport. He said so far they have not found any passengers showing symptoms of pneumonia caused by the new coronavirus.
“We are also coordinating with infectious disease-control agencies in countries from where the passengers came to U-Tapao airport and where they will go to in order to share and update information on the virus status,” he said.
