Masks sold out as flu scare grips Mizoram

AIZAWL, Aug 18 :Face masks are flying off drug store shelves in Aizawl as the State’s first two cases of swine flu were confirmed on Saturday.

Despite the health officials assurance that there was no need for commoners to wear preventive masks, people in large number thronged drug stores in Aizawl to buy the masks.

“People started buying face masks after reports of the outbreak of swine flu surfaced in Mizoram. We have run out of stock within two days,” said a shopkeeper at Emy Drug Store today.

The prices of face masks have also automatically gone up. “We ordered a few boxes of masks from Guwahati at the rate of Rs 5 per piece last week.

The prices have gone up now. As a result, we have to sell a mask at Rs 10,” the shopkeeper said.

Another shopkeeper said: “We ordered three boxes of masks a month back. We were not able to sell a single piece until two persons tested positive for swine flu. Then, they were sold within two days.” Meanwhile, the health department has sent a few more throat swab samples, including those of the victims relatives, to the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED) in Kolkata.

“The results are expected tomorrow,” said Dr Pachuau Lalmalsawma, a government spokesperson. The two victims, both CRPF personnel, were being quarantined at Falkawn Referral and their conditions were not critical, according to health officials.