An article in Emerging Infectious Diseases magazine found that nine people sitting next to one another in a restaurant in China contracted COVID-19 after spreading the virus through air conditioning.
The Business Insider site indicated that the three apparently healthy families were sitting at different tables in a windowless restaurant in Guangzhou, China. But why did it happen?
Investigators studying the case believe that the restaurant's air conditioning spread the viral drops from an asymptomatic person until then.
But the source of this outbreak is now believed to be a 63-year-old woman who showed no symptoms until hours later, when she went to the hospital and tested positive for COVID-19.
This surprised the researchers, since the new coronavirus is transmitted by tiny droplets or heavy particles that tend not to float more than a meter, and families were more separated than that. Therefore, they believe that air conditioning could have taken the viral drops further.
Fortunately, none of the other 73 diners and eight employees who were in the establishment were ill.
However, as restaurants seek to reopen, experts say additional security measures should be taken, such as limiting the time customers can spend eating, reducing capacity, and turning off air conditioning or heating, as well as recommending employees to wear a mask, as recently experts warn that we must wear a mask for a year.
"To prevent the spread of the virus in restaurants, we recommend increasing the distance between tables and improving ventilation," they wrote.
And is that since March 1, the restaurant industry has lost more than three million jobs, according to data from the National Restaurant Association and, in the United States, one in five of them could permanently close due to the pandemic, according to a UBS calculation.
William Schaffner , professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University, Tennessee, said this finding is a good resource to help us understand what restaurant reopens would look like.
"We are going to open again, but the trick will be to open slowly, do it gradually [...] and do it at half capacity, spacing the seats," he said.
For her part, Jennifer Horney , founding director of the University of Delaware epidemiology program, told Business Insider that instead of creating restrictions, such as banning air conditioning or cookouts, restaurants might find it easier to adapt. existing rules, such as those related to the capacity of the place.
"Existing regulations, such as fire code occupancy numbers, could be used to establish a maximum number, such as 25% of normal occupancy, which could be safely met at any time," he said.
However, it is not yet clear if space and capacity rules could make a difference, as Schaffner believes that few restaurants will actually comply with established rules.
"Some restaurants will say, 'Listen, we are doing a lot of business. Let's open a few more tables. The police won't catch us tonight."
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