Worried but prepared. This is how the Algarve feels about the threat of the Coronavirus (Covid-19), which has already reached Seville, very close by.
Both from the tourism sector, as well as from representatives of health professionals, a message of some concern has arrived, but without alarmism.
After all, in Portugal's main tourist region, which receives millions of travelers annually from all continents, and with an International Airport, the risks of entry of infected people are higher than in other parts of the country.
Tomorrow, 28 February, there is a flight departing Milan (Malpensa), one of the critical areas of the coronavirus, which arrives at the airport of Faroat 9 pm.
“We are a region that depends a lot on foreign markets and we are monitoring each one's situation, not only in terms of reality, but also in terms of perception. Tourism is sensitive to perceptions, sometimes more than to reality," he said to the Sul Informação, João Fernandes, president of the Algarve Tourism Region (RTA).
The effects of Covid-19 in the hotel operation are already beginning to make themselves felt.
«I know that there were some cancellations of Italians who came to the Algarve, despite being something with little expression. It is a situation that worries us, despite the fact that the origin of our customers is not, for the most part, from the most affected places», told our newspaper João Soares, regional delegate of the Hotel Association of Portugal (AHP) and director of the historic Hotel D. José, in Quarteira.
Ao Sul Informação, Italy's diplomatic source in Portugal said that the government of that country has acted "with clarity and transparency towards Italian citizens."
Asked what measures are planned for Italians visiting the Algarve - or even for residents -, the same source only recommended that a special page on the Embassy websitea, dedicated to the coronavirus outbreak. Italy, by the way, has been one of the most affected countries, with 11 confirmed deaths.
On the part of tourists in general, there are those who are beginning to question "about the measures we have", according to João Soares. "We can be indirectly affected by the operators themselves who have major changes in the countries that are most affected", he considered.
Among the countries affected is neighboring Spain. And there is already a confirmed case in Seville, the capital of Andalusia, about 150 kilometers from the Algarve. This is a 62-year-old man with pneumonia, who has not been to any of the most critical areas, such as northern Italy, nor has he left Spain.
“We don't have a perception of fear, but we see how people are more attentive. Soon, AHP will launch a set of measures that hotels should adopt, such as hand washing, because we have to raise awareness and protect them as much as possible», added João Soares.
Also from the doctors, there is some concern. To Sul Informação, Noel Carrilho, president of the National Federation of Physicians (FNAM), said that the situation is worrying, as the Algarve is “a region where so many people enter”.
“On Saturday we will have a meeting of the national council and we are preparing an update of the data, namely about what is well and what is not well”, he stressed, noting that only then will the FNAM take an official position.
However, yesterday, at the hearing of the Health Commission of the Assembly of the Republic, João Proença, also a member and former leader of the Federation, criticized the capacity to respond to a possible outbreak. “I hope we don't have the Coronavirus pandemic, because we don't have organizational capacity. I don't see four or five laboratories operating nationwide,” he said.
João Dias, regional leader of the Independent Medical Association (SIM), told our newspaper that he has not yet received any information on a plan to respond to the possible Covid-19 epidemic in the Algarve.
“I still haven't noticed any unusual measures. But we still don't have any case in the Algarve. We assume that everything is organized. I don't know of any plan, but I believe there is one», explained doctor João Dias.
O Sul Informação asked the Directorate General of Health about the action plan that will be outlined to face an outbreak in the Algarve and whether it differs from what is planned at national level, taking into account the specificities of the region, the main tourist destination in Portugal.
We also wanted to know what the response capacity of the Algarve's public health units is.
However, after more than 24 hours of waiting and much insistence, our newspaper did not get any response from the DGS.
What is certain is that, among the 1st and 2nd line referral hospitals for containment and validation of Covid-19 cases, there are none below the Tagus. In other words: there are none in the Algarve.
Speaking of plans, João Fernandes, from RTA, admits that there are none specifically for the region. «There is a plan that is used in emergency situations that is drawn up by Turismo de Portugal for critical situations. Fate doesn't have any concrete cases yet. We are not without risk, but we are in concert», he explained.
«We have been talking to the associations, to make known the measures, namely in terms of information to be given to the traveller. We are prepared to liaise with the health sector», he reinforced.
But, he also admitted, if all this "affects the perception of the outbound markets, transmitting a situation of insecurity, it is normal for there to be repercussions on tourism."
Hotelier João Soares reinforced: "we do not want to cause alarmism, but we are concerned and attentive".
And is the Algarve region ready for a possible case of coronavirus?
«The Algarve is a well-prepared destination for various events and will certainly be well-prepared for any eventuality». This is at least the hope expressed by João Fernandes, president of the Tourism Region.
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