Seychelles Women and Sports Association – Women’s Day Fun Run |06 March 2020

Swasa calls off fun run as part of COVID-19 safety measures

As part of the safety measures set up by the department of health to prevent the outbreak of the coronaviruses, the scheduled fun-run to commemorate the International Women’s Day which is on March 8 has been cancelled.

In its to-do list regarding the coronaviruses (COVID-19), the department of health is advising organisers of large public gatherings to cancel or postpone the event until further notice.

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).

A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans.

Coronaviruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and people.

Detailed investigations found that SARS-CoV was transmitted from civet cats to humans and MERS-CoV from dromedary camels to humans. Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals that have not yet infected humans.

Common signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.

In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death.

Standard recommendations to prevent infection spread include regular hand washing, covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, thoroughly cooking meat and eggs. Avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing.

Roland Duval