Via a reader tip comes news that a virus is spreading among workers at the Winter Olympics:
Soldiers guard the entrance to Gangneung Oval on Feb. 5 after they replaced 1,200 Olympics security agents who were quarantined the same day because some have contracted norovirus. / Yonhap
Some security agents responsible for the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games have been infected with norovirus, forcing organizers to quarantine about 1,200 agents and replace them with soldiers.
The committee categorized 41 staff members as “suspected patients” on Monday.
Earlier the day, the committee had said three of them were confirmed to have contracted the virus, also known as the winter vomiting bug, while 38 were suspected of having it.
The patients vomited and suffered from stomach pains.Some of the agents were in charge of the athletes’ village, raising concerns that the virus may affect international athletes who will stay there.
The patients, mostly university students, were hired by a recruiting agency to provide workforce for screening at the entrance of venues.
Organizers said the virus appeared to have originated from Horeb Odaesan Youth Training Center in PyeongChang, where the agents stayed in a room for six in a group of 10. The Institute of Health and Environment under Gangwon Province Office found traces of the virus in a drinking water dispenser, and in shower rooms and in washroom basins. Â [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but if a number of athletes get sick because of this virus, this will be a major setback for South Korea who is hosting the games.
University students hired to “provide workforce for screening at the entrance of venues”?
Phew! That’s good. University students would never be involved in a Nork plot to make South Korea look bad…
Flyingsword
6 years ago
Let a bunch of nKs in knowing any of them could be delivering bio terror weapon, good idea.
Lastly, human agents have been discussed consistently as plausible BW
delivery means. Its culture of North Korea prioritizing military objectives
over human lives could drive it to use human vectors to deliver and spread
BW. North Korea has 200,000 special forces; even a handful of those special
forces armed with BW would be enough to devastate South Korea….. Another possibility is that North Korean agents will introduce BW into water supplies for
major metropolitan areas. https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/2017-10/NK%20Bioweapons%20final.pdf
University students hired to “provide workforce for screening at the entrance of venues”?
Phew! That’s good. University students would never be involved in a Nork plot to make South Korea look bad…
Let a bunch of nKs in knowing any of them could be delivering bio terror weapon, good idea.
Lastly, human agents have been discussed consistently as plausible BW
delivery means. Its culture of North Korea prioritizing military objectives
over human lives could drive it to use human vectors to deliver and spread
BW. North Korea has 200,000 special forces; even a handful of those special
forces armed with BW would be enough to devastate South Korea….. Another possibility is that North Korean agents will introduce BW into water supplies for
major metropolitan areas.
https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/2017-10/NK%20Bioweapons%20final.pdf
More on the virus itself: https://disasterdoc.net/2013/02/25/meet-norovirus-the-perfect-infection/
@Flyingsword
NORK SFs could be hanging out in that ferry for all we know.