By STEVE SALDIVAR
As the number of reported swine flu cases in California grew to 10 this week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, some in the Mission District were taking precautions. At least one store had sold out of surgical masks.
“Right now we’re out. We can’t get them,” said Brenda Sabido, store manager at Farmacia Remedios at 2400 Mission St.
“They’ve sold out over the last couple of days,” said Sabido, who has never seen a demand for surgical masks like this in the past.
Farmacia Remedios’ mask sales went up 200% last week, according to Lucy Gomez, co-director of purchasing.
“It’s been overwhelming,” Gomez said of the situation. “We are helping our community with information we are receiving from Mexico and locally.” Staff members were told to wash their hands with soap regularly and were given the option to wear gloves and masks.
None of the staff were wearing gloves or masks last Tuesday night.
Swine flu is believed to have originated in Mexico, which has 397 confirmed cases including 16 deaths, according to Saturday’s update from the World Health Organization. The San Francisco Chronicle also reported last Thursday that doctors had confirmed the first two cases of swine flu in the Bay Area in Marin.
If anything, the public has been well informed because of the potential of the situation, said Jessica Lopes, a spokeswoman at the Consulate of Mexico in San Francisco. Their website includes a section of frequently asked questions in Spanish.
The sign greeting visitors to the consulate warns “cubra su tos“—cover your mouth when coughing.
A box of surgical masks and spray cleaners were delivered last Tuesday for staff members.
“We’re a window of information,” said Lopez, who had a copy of the San Francisco Chronicle on his desk and Univision airing on his television.
Although nobody has come in to the consulate sick, many are coming in with a familiar question: Should I go back to Mexico and help my family?
Many of these potential travelers received good news recently. Mexicana and Aero Mexico, two major airlines, are waving change fees, according to Francisco Cabrera, a tour manager for TravelNet at 3376 24th St.
Mission District residents hesitant about going to Mexico can hold their tickets for a year without penalty, he said.
Cabrera, who has worked in the Mission District for 20 years, hasn’t seen many of his customers affected by swine flu reports. “It’s not what you see in the news,” he said. “They are a bit more realistic.
“It sucks,” he continued. “It’s lamentable to think that our neighbor, another big country, can’t get a hold of it. They haven’t been able to find the source.”
Some like Cabrera are not letting swine flu health reports change the way they live.
“That’s pretty ridiculous,” said Cabrera of drivers in the Mission District wearing masks. “Some people are just paranoid.”
The Centers for Disease Control and the Mexican consulate recommend covering your mouth when you cough, washing your hands frequently, keeping your hands away from your eyes, and avoiding sick people or staying home if you are sick.
Now I do think people wish they could eliminate a whole culture or group with a diseases but science isn’t so precise as this. Thank goodness.