La Gloria: at swine flu's 'ground zero'
LA GLORIA, MEXICO – As we arrived the little Mexican mountain hamlet of La Gloria, where the swine flu epidemic may or may not have begun, we were all a little nervous about infection.
Apparently about 400 people here had suffered serious flu symptoms in the last month or so. And any kind of flu – porcine or not – seems worth avoiding.
We all strapped on our special FFP3D masks. But as soon as we got out of the car I felt very self conscious about our preparedness.
If people here had masks at all they were flimsy paper ones. Usually filthy and clearly had been worn for days. Exactly what we’d heard on TV that day didn’t work to stop infection. And these are the people who sincerely believe they are living in swine flu ground zero.
They looked enviously at our “Star Wars” masks and said they would only take us to where they had found piles of rotting pig carcasses if we gave them fancy masks too.
We had none spare so had to bribe them with little bottles of hand sanitiser. Apparently there isn’t much of that in rural Mexico either.
As for medicine – that arrived in La Gloria the same day we did. Weeks after the first flu cases had been reported there. And almost no one could afford to pay for what few drugs were available. Not until the Red Cross turned up.
It’s not quite as bad in Mexico City. But I have spoken to desperate people queuing up outside hospitals, convinced they have the flu, but unable to get any kind of treatment.
The big question for the WHO, the CDC and everyone else right now is why are there so many deaths in Mexico and so few elsewhere?
Well, I am no scientist but I do know that all I had to do to get a packet of Tamiflu in Washington before I left was make one call to my doctor. When I had not even been exposed to the virus at that point, let alone shown symptoms of the flu.
While in Mexico the desperately poor know they will have to suffer without treatment. And that contrast may go some way to answering the conundrum.
– Previous blog post from Mexico City is here.