China takes steps to stop entry of plague from Madagascar

China's exit-entry inspection and quarantine authorities will closely watch the plague in Madagascar and take measures and prevent the disease from entering the country, according to the quarantine watchdog.

The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine immediately responded after receiving notification on the plague outbreak in Madagascar on Oct 2, and ordered local exit-entry inspection and quarantine authorities across the nation to join efforts on disease prevention and control, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

Port authorities have intensified health inspections and quarantine on people and cargo from areas affected by the plague, taking steps such as measuring body temperature and sterilizing containers and parcels from these areas, the administration said.

The plague broke out in Madagascar in August, and 1,297 cases were reported as of Oct 19, 846 of which being pneumonic, according to the data shared by the administration and the World Health Organization. A total of 102 fatalities have been reported.

The cases were reported in big cities of Madagascar and the disease may spread globally, and the WHO has specified nine countries and regions, including South Africa, Mozambique and Kenya, as the ones with high risks of getting infected, the administration said.

Exit-entry inspection and quarantine authorities in China intercepted more than 500,000 batches of goods carried by passengers and in cargo between January and September, a rise of more than 15 percent compared with the same period last year, Han Yunping, spokesman of the administration, said.

To prevent the disease from entering China, Beijing Exit-Entry Inspection and Quarantine Bureau has intensified inspection of airplanes that are more likely to have passengers from Madagascar and Seychelles, including sending staff members on board for inspection, the bureau said. It also tightened monitoring of cargo and mails from these countries, it said.

A group of six Chinese public health experts, including members from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, left for Madagascar on Friday to help the country fight the disease. The team was sent in response to a call for help from the country, according to China CDC.