Fair Haven Heights Alderman Alex Rhodeen has been on a work trip to Mexico just as the swine flu outbreak hit. He sent home these photos and the following write-up. We all wish him a safe, flu-free rest of his trip:
Mexico City, DF, Mexico — Over the past ten days I’ve been in Mexico for work leading a team on a roll-out of store-within-a-store set-ups in 30 Sears Mexico locations. Thursday I was in Monterrey with a co-worker when the first significant reports came out about the swine flu which has surfaced in Mexico and, in some cases, resulted in death.
By Saturday the world had its eyes on Mexico, in particular the capital Mexico City. We drove from Monterrey to Torreon and then flew back to Mexico City late Saturday night.
At the airport in Torreon they were offering masks to anyone requesting one. Some gallows humor overheard at the airport included several family members telling a traveler that they wouldn’t allow him to come home if he gets sick. Everyone laughed, including those nearby, but it’s clear that the real concern is how widespread this strain of the flu will become.
Landing in Mexico City: a conversation with a Federal Police officer revealed that he received a vaccination that day. It’s not clear what the vaccine was designed to
treat since, according to news reports, it appears there isn’t a vaccine for this particular strain.
Exiting from baggage claim we were greeted with the sight of families wearing masks waiting to greet loved ones. Driving through Mexico City to our hotel the cab driver noted it was much quieter than usual for a Saturday night.
Sunday morning I awoke to reports that churches, businesses and public areas were
closed or deserted throughout much of Mexico City. Our hotel is located in Centro
Historico, which includes the Federal Plaza and many businesses.
Simply going by what I saw walking around, the streets were fairly busy by early afternoon and
approximately half the pedestrians I saw were wearing masks.
It appeared that friends and family we adopting an all or nothing approach — it was rare to see two people together with only one wearing a mask. The majority of mask-wearers appeared to be older but one major concern with this flu is that it is striking 20 – 40 year-olds who typically are less susceptible to the flu.
One member of my team has been ill for 24 hours so a doctor was called but it appears to be a bad meal and not likely the flu. Two shots and four prescriptions later my hope is that he’s on the road to recovery and won’t order the chicken club sandwich again.
Visiting the pharmacy one saw signs saying no more masks were available. I expect by tomorrow morning that many of the entrepreneurs who walk through stopped traffic
will add masks to their offerings.
I’m scheduled to fly home Tuesday morning to JFK and expect to have a lengthy trip through customs along with everyone else arriving from Mexico City.