Google shuts office after employee develops swine flu
The tiny H1N1 virus felled search giant Google on Tuesday, when the company shut its Hyderabad office for two days after an employee tested positive for the swine flu virus.
Confirming the development, a Google spokesperson told the media that about the 1,000 employees working at the facility have been asked to be screened for the virus at the Andhra Pradesh Chest Hospital. “One of our contractual workers in Hyderabad has been diagnosed with the H1N1 virus. He has been hospitalized and is under full medical care. As a precautionary measure, we have closed the office in Hyderabad for two days – July 14 and 15,” the spokesperson said. “We are taking all necessary steps, including sanitizing of common areas, to protect our employees.”
Media reports said that about 95 employees have been tested at the Chest Hospital so far.
The unidentified employee, who media reports say is a contract worker, is believed to have contracted the virus from another techie who returned from Houston, US, early July. The infected techie passed the H1N1 virus on to six other IT workers, whose families and friends are now being checked for symptoms.The six workers, including the infected techie, were diagnosed with swine flu on Sunday. With this, the total number of cases in the IT city has gone up to 31, the maximum in the country. Overall, India has reported about 200 cases of infections despite health checks at the airports.
The high occurrence of swine flu infection in Hyderabad could be because IT workers are required to travel abroad frequently for on-site work. As more and more infections come to light among techies, industry body Hyderabad Software Exporters’ Association is planning to create awareness among IT employees about the virus. M Narasimha Rao, the president of the association, told The Hindu Business Line, “Awareness is happening among the IT employees. But we have decided to talk about specific measures to be taken.”
Worldwide, the virus has infected more than 90,000 people and claimed close to 400 lives since it broke out in April. The World Health Organisation has already declared it a pandemic and called for vaccines to be developed against the virus.
