Asian countries are on high alert after cases of the deadly Nipah virus were detected in West Bengal, India.
According to Fox News, the zoonotic virus can spread between animals and people, mostly fruit bats and pigs, with mild to severe symptoms from fevers to brain infection and death, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Five people have contracted the Nipah virus, the Thai government confirmed.
India’s National Center for Disease Control also confirmed the outbreak, writing it is “not major” and is limited to two “districts in Kerala (Kozhikode) [and] Malappuram.
Countries in the region have been put on alert, with health officials implementing tracking and prevention rules similar to those implemented during the COVID pandemic.
Thailand’s Department of Disease Control (TDDC) issued a press release Friday to emphasize that the measures are in place “to monitor and screen travelers at international communicable disease control checkpoints. Measures have been taken to monitor travelers.”
Travelers must share their travel history and possible exposure link. If they have any symptoms, they need to disclose the date those symptoms began.
The TDDC director general warned that the virus “can cause neurological symptoms and has a relatively high death rate.”
