Toilet turnstile blamed for 867 COVID-19 infections found in a week at Simummuang market

[webfact]

 

867 out of 10,480 vendors and workers at the Simummuang fruit and vegetable market in Pathum Thani province screened for COVID-19 by health officials, or 8%, tested positive for the virus, with most infections appearing to have come from touching the turnstile at the coin-operated public toilets in the market.

 

The figure followed screening of market vendors and workers between May 7th and 15th. 70% of the infected are Thais and the rest are foreign migrant workers. The infections are limited to 2 of the 10 zones in the market, according to Public Health Permanent Secretary Dr. Kiatiphum Wongrajit yesterday (Tuesday).

 

Dr. Kiatiphum said that the two zones have been closed off and a field hospital, with 400 beds, has been set up in the market, with another, also equipped with 400 beds, scheduled to open on Thursday.

 

Source: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/toilet-turnstile-blamed-for-867-covid-19-infections-found-in-a-week-at-simummuang-market/

 

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[AlfHuy]

Welcome to the beautiful toilets.

Usually the shopping mall toilets are very clean.

[Wiggy]

How on Earth can you blame an inanimate object for the spread of a virus?
 

Oh, wait, I forgot where I was for a moment. 

Edited May 19, 2021 by Wiggy

[Snig27]

Has someone told the US CDC this? They said there are zero known cases of surface transfer. Amazing Thailand and its medical advances. 

[cclub75]

It might look funny... But actually, it's sound science.

 

-toilets : virus can be found in feces and can travel by pipes.

This theory... is old as the SARS event (2003) when authorities in Hong Kong were struggling to explain contaminations in a condo building (the virus was travelling by the toilets pipes).

 

Source : https://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2003/pr70/en/

 

And even recently with Sars Cov 2 in China :

 

Source : https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8697839/Three-Chinese-families-different-floors-infected-virus-spread-plumbing.html

 

-several countries are monitoring.... the sewages ! Very good way to "detect", way in advance, a contamination event (in a city).

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/covid-19-special-detecting-coronavirus-in-wastewater/av-56934167

 

-last but not least : surface contamination... is real.

Source : https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/science-and-research/surface-transmission.html

[richard_smith237]

2 minutes ago, Snig27 said:

Has someone told the US CDC this? They said there are zero known cases of surface transfer. Amazing Thailand and its medical advances. 

 

If someone with Covid-19 coughs or sneezes into their hand, then opens a door, then 5 mins later another person opens that same door, then rubs their eye etc... there is a significant risk of transmission. 

 

Someone has misread reports or there has been some misunderstanding if the suggestion is that there are zero cases of passive vector transmission (via surfaces). 

 

The risk of fomite (surface) transmission is considered less than the risk associated with direct airborne transmission (i.e. breathing in droplets / aerosol expelled by a contagious person).

 

The CDC states ‘it is not clear what proportion of SARS-CoV-2 infections are acquired through surface transmission’.

 

I an area of high footfall it makes perfect sense that a turnstile at a toilet could be the major passive vector. 

 

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/science-and-research/surface-transmission.html

 

[johng]

6 minutes ago, Snig27 said:

Has someone told the US CDC this? They said there are zero known cases of surface transfer.

 

I remember right at the start all the "experts"  saying it could "survive" on surfaces for up to ( if remember correctly)  72 hours   remember when the

 international postage was disrupted because they had to quarantine the mail and the news showing workers spraying parcels/goods  and at that time also travellers suitcases..then later they say there is no risk from parcels  but still risk from hard surfaces (there was a thread here about polishing door knobs ???????? )

Now no surface transfer ????

[Caldera]

I find this hard to believe, considering that infection from a contaminated surface is now considered a relatively minor risk compared with droplet and aerosol transmission.

 

Also, if there was ever a good time to use your hand sanitizer, it would be after using a public restroom.

 

I've seen groups of market vendors mingling and chatting while eating, masks down obviously. I'd look no further than that.

[richard_smith237]

27 minutes ago, Caldera said:

I find this hard to believe, considering that infection from a contaminated surface is now considered a relatively minor risk compared with droplet and aerosol transmission.

 

The CDC stated that the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection via the fomite transmission route is low, and generally less than 1 in 10,000

 

i.e. each contact with a contaminated surface has less than a 1 in 10,000 chance of causing an infection.

 

I don’t buy this....   1 in 10,000 ratio... it conflicts with common sense. 

 

 

 

Edited May 19, 2021 by richard_smith237

[bluesofa]

55 minutes ago, Wiggy said:

How on Earth can you blame an inanimate object for the spread of a virus?
 

Oh, wait, I forgot where I was for a moment. 

A year ago scientists were trying to find out different ways covid could be transmitted.

A medical journal in the US published data that the covid virus could survive for up to 72 hours on plastic and 48 hours on stainless steel.

 

source: https://hub.jhu.edu/2020/03/20/sars-cov-2-survive-on-surfaces/   

[4MyEgo]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

with most infections appearing to have come from touching the turnstile at the coin-operated public toilets in the market.

 

I have seen many a Thai and others never washing their hands entering or exiting toilets, suffice to say, touching anything, including ones private parts, must start with washing hands before and after, anything less than that is just plan dirty !!!

 

I have been to a Macro store toilet where they have a yellow fly/insect screen which is in strips, where you have to fight your way to get in and out, walking in and out backwards using your back does help.

Edited May 19, 2021 by 4MyEgo

[Justgrazing]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

with most infections appearing to have come from touching the turnstile at the coin-operated public toilets in the market.

 

Blimey spend a penny an' do some quarantine in return .. 

sounds like a cr*p deal to me .. 

Is it extra hard wearing covid on the turnstile as well ? as you might have thought it had been worn away after few dozen touches , alright maybe a couple of hundred but 800 odd is stretching it abit .. 

[AlfHuy]

5 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

I have seen many a Thai and others never washing their hands entering or exiting toilets, suffice to say, touching anything, including ones private parts must start with washing hands before and after, anything less than that is just dirty !!!

Which private parts?

[4MyEgo]

Just now, AlfHuy said:

Which private parts?

 

The ones belonging to the guys to your left and your right....lol

[AlfHuy]

2 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

The ones belonging to the guys to your left and your right....lol

????

Why not. I'm always ready to lend a hand.

[Brunolem]

Did they at least bring the janitor in for (enhanced) interrogation?

[bluesofa]

4 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

I have seen many a Thai and others never washing their hands entering or exiting toilets, suffice to say, touching anything, including ones private parts must start with washing hands before and after, anything less than that is just dirty !!!

Slightly OT.

I remember hearing in a safety/cleanliness lecture about the importance of washing your hands after using the toilet, but also before.

. There was an instance quoted of a guy who worked in an engineering factory. He developed cancer of the penis, due to not washing his hands before urinating. The germs, etc, present on his very dirty hands were transferred every day for years.

[AlfHuy]

2 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

Slightly OT.

I remember hearing in a safety/cleanliness lecture about the importance of washing your hands after using the toilet, but also before.

. There was an instance quoted of a guy who worked in an engineering factory. He developed cancer of the penis, due to not washing his hands before urinating. The germs, etc, present on his very dirty hands were transferred every day for years.

Cancer on the penis.

Never heard about this.

 

 

[bluesofa]

6 minutes ago, AlfHuy said:

Cancer on the penis.

Never heard about this

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/penile-cancer/detection-diagnosis-staging/signs-symptoms.html

https://www.webmd.com/cancer/penile-cancer-overview

 

[AlfHuy]

4 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/penile-cancer/detection-diagnosis-staging/signs-symptoms.html

https://www.webmd.com/cancer/penile-cancer-overview

 

O sh...

Imagine it falls off, not joking.

[bluesofa]

24 minutes ago, Justgrazing said:

 

Blimey spend a penny an' do some quarantine in return .. 

sounds like a cr*p deal to me .. 

Is it extra hard wearing covid on the turnstile as well ? as you might have thought it had been worn away after few dozen touches , alright maybe a couple of hundred but 800 odd is stretching it abit .. 

We're getting down to logistics now. I know I'm making some assumptions here, but bear with me.

 

If, for example there is a turnstile at the entrance, then either another turnstile or a door which needs to be pushed open.

One person puts the covid germ on the turnstile at entry. Some people immediately following could touch it. Then the exit could have the same problem with the exit passing on the germ through contact.

Again, if people use the toilet a couple of times a day, they could be repeating the process. If they use the market regularly, once infected they'll be doing the same for days.

 

As I posted earlier on here about plastic, stainless steel, cardboard, copper, being found to harbour the covid germ, I'd think it could be possible.

 

[Captain Monday]

27 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

Slightly OT.

I remember hearing in a safety/cleanliness lecture about the importance of washing your hands after using the toilet, but also before.

. There was an instance quoted of a guy who worked in an engineering factory. He developed cancer of the penis, due to not washing his hands before urinating. The germs, etc, present on his very dirty hands were transferred every day for years.

My rig is clean, thus always was before, most important.  Then after Certainly when eating spicy finger food...

 

[ukrules]

2 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

The CDC states ‘it is not clear what proportion of SARS-CoV-2 infections are acquired through surface transmission’.

Close to zero would be my estimate - like a couple of percent max.

 

This story is complete rubbish, if anything it would be the air inside the toilets, not the turnstile.

 

To blame the turnstile for this many cases is quite literally unbelievable, I don't believe it but if it was true then there must be another ten to twenty thousand cases which aren't related to the turnstile. Assuming there aren't then the turnstile thing is complete bull.

 

[smedly]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

with most infections appearing to have come from touching the turnstile at the coin-operated public toilets in the market

correct or not - we have a market were food is being sold and it would appear that hands are not being washed after toilet use 

 

disgusting 

[wensiensheng]

16 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

We're getting down to logistics now. I know I'm making some assumptions here, but bear with me.

 

If, for example there is a turnstile at the entrance, then either another turnstile or a door which needs to be pushed open.

One person puts the covid germ on the turnstile at entry. Some people immediately following could touch it. Then the exit could have the same problem with the exit passing on the germ through contact.

Again, if people use the toilet a couple of times a day, they could be repeating the process. If they use the market regularly, once infected they'll be doing the same for days.

 

As I posted earlier on here about plastic, stainless steel, cardboard, copper, being found to harbour the covid germ, I'd think it could be possible.

 

Or the men could just be standing next to each other in the urinal, coughing, spluttering, spitting? That’s a possibility.

 

meanwhile women chatting while washing their hands, laughing, sneezing, shouting? That’s also possible.

 

or it could be the inanimate object obstacle course that you describe.

 

just kidding, i assume the authorities did some kind of analysis to suggest the turnstile, details of which are not public.

 

 

[2 is 1]

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

I have seen many a Thai and others never washing their hands entering or exiting toilets, suffice to say, touching anything, including ones private parts, must start with washing hands before and after, anything less than that is just plan dirty !!!

 

In ground forces they teatch us not <deleted> our hands! Dont know why Navy boys have always wet hands, maybe its salt water.

Edited May 19, 2021 by 2 is 1

[Justgrazing]

32 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

We're getting down to logistics now. I know I'm making some assumptions here, but bear with me.

 

If, for example there is a turnstile at the entrance, then either another turnstile or a door which needs to be pushed open.

One person puts the covid germ on the turnstile at entry. Some people immediately following could touch it. Then the exit could have the same problem with the exit passing on the germ through contact.

Again, if people use the toilet a couple of times a day, they could be repeating the process. If they use the market regularly, once infected they'll be doing the same for days.

 

As I posted earlier on here about plastic, stainless steel, cardboard, copper, being found to harbour the covid germ, I'd think it could be possible.

 

 

Stileishly written there Mr Sofa .. 

but won't the virus get dizzy going round and around on these turnstiles .. 

Edited May 19, 2021 by Justgrazing
Sp

[bluesofa]

1 hour ago, AlfHuy said:

????

Why not. I'm always ready to lend a hand.

Pull the other one.

[tifino]

it was an open and shut case, to blame the gate 

[bluesofa]

21 minutes ago, Justgrazing said:

 

Stileishly written there Mr Sofa .. 

but won't the virus get dizzy going round and around on these turnstiles .. 

No more so than listening to those spin doctors.