Travel centers on alert for new disease

The pneumonia-like illness that has gripped parts of Asia is cutting international travel as vacationers and businesspeople, including from the Northwest, postpone or cancel their trips.

Hong Kong is one of the areas worst affected by the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) which as of yesterday had sickened 1,485 people and killed 53 in more than a dozen in Asia, North America and Europe.

In Hong Kong and Singapore in particular, schools have been closed, sports and cultural events canceled and quarantines imposed to control the spread of the new disease.

Asian and Western governments have cautioned travelers about SARS. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said that "people planning elective or nonessential travel to mainland China and Hong Kong; Singapore; and Hanoi, Vietnam, may wish to postpone their trips until further notice."

Travel to and within Asia already had dropped because of the worldwide economic slowdown and the Iraq war. Now the disease, which has spread worldwide through international travelers, is taking its toll. "The war and SARS has really cut down a lot on business, about 35 percent for us," said Robert Ha, manager of Asia Travel in Seattle, which specializes in travel to Hong Kong and China.

Asian airlines and hotels reported cancellations. "Hotel cancellations have hit 20 to 30 percent over the past week," Jimmy Koh, a research director at United Overseas Bank in Singapore, told Reuters.

However, other travel businesses, including AAA Washington/Inland, have had few inquiries and no cancellations yet, said spokeswoman Janet Ray.

A Seattle-based cruise line, Holland America, has two ships that left Hong Kong yesterday after port calls there. The company is giving passengers extensive information about the disease, said spokesman Erik Elvejord, including updates from the CDC.

The United Nations' World Health Organization has recommended governments in affected areas screen outbound international air travelers for the disease so it isn't spread further. And airlines are on the alert for travelers who show SARS symptoms — which include coughing, high fever and difficulty in breathing. They may be refused boarding or, if they show symptoms aboard a plane, be isolated as much as possible, including using a face mask.

In U.S. airports, including Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, travelers arriving from affected areas are being handed CDC health-alert sheets about the illness in English and in Asian languages.

Other countries are monitoring travelers closely for SARS.

All Hong Kong travelers must fill out health-declaration forms starting today.

The Philippines is asking travelers arriving from infected areas to voluntarily quarantine themselves for a week.

Kristin Jackson: 206-464-2271 or kjackson@seattletimes.com