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You can't mask the flu out
Updated On: 10 August, 2009 07:27 AM IST | | Amit Singh
Special protection masks against H1N1 go out of stock. Disposable surgical masks doing brisk business
Special protection masks against H1N1 go out of stock. Disposable surgical masks doing brisk business
The panic is slowly but surely setting in.
The national capital with 228 reported cases of swine flu has started feeling the heat as the residents lined up before the hospitals to get themselves checked and the protective gear the specialized N-95 masks going out of stock.
The demand for the masks has gone manifold, resulting in chemists across the city and the National Capital Region running short in supply. The masks made of three layers of spun cloth have proven effective in providing safety against contracting the H1N1 virus.
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Panic-stricken: People waiting their turn at the special swine flu screening ward at the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi on Sunday |
However, in the absence of the N-95 masks the general disposable surgical masks are doing brisk business.
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"The cheap anti-pollution masks made out of normal cotton cloth (priced at roughly Rs 10) are in huge demand.
Though they do not guarantee any safety against swine flu virus. The N-95 are not easily available. Most chemists have placed orders with distributors after the demand surged," said one of the store managers of Apollo Pharmacy located in south Delhi.
Another chemist Satya Kumar, whose shop is located near All India Institute of Medical Sciences said, "Nearly 50-60 people come daily enquiring about the mask but we have had to turn them away due to its non-availability. We advise them to purchase cloth and disposable surgical masks."
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