Coronavirus: the race for protection masks in Portugal began

Portuguese who are in Wuhan may be isolated as soon as they arrive in Portugal. DGS defends the mounted strategy. Symptom-free contagion creates greater uncertainty.

The spread of the new coronavirus led to a race for protective masks, especially by Eastern people who want to send them to their countries of origin. In view of the apprehension generated by the disease, the hospitals of São João, in Porto, and Curry Cabral and Estefânia, in Lisbon, prepared contingency plans, in case the virus arrives in Portugal. This Tuesday, the disease was spreading at great speed in China, to the point of Brussels activating the Civil Protection Mechanism to repatriate the Europeans who are in Wuhan, the most affected city.

The race for protective masks is running out of pharmacy stocks, the industry association confirmed. JN contacted eight (in Porto, Braga, Guimarães and Lisbon) and they all had greater demand. There are Portuguese people to buy, but the majority are oriental citizens, to send them to their countries of origin. “A man from Hong Kong bought it in Portugal because the family couldn’t buy it there,” said a person in charge of Farmácia Henriques, in Porto.

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