CMO warns allergy, asthma sufferers to take extra precaution as fires continue

- by Anesta Henry March 21, 2023

By Anesta Henry

Asthmatics and persons who suffer from allergies and sinus complications have been advised to take all precautionary measures to protect themselves as the country continues to experience a series of cane and grass fires.
Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr. The Most Honourable Kenneth George is also supporting the decision of the Ministry of Education to close affected schools to protect students and teachers from the potentially harmful inhalations.
However, Dr George told Barbados TODAY that he had received no reports from polyclinics or the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) regarding an alarming increase in persons reporting to the facilities complaining of health issues due to the environmental hazard.
“The major persons who would be affected are persons who have some form of allergy. And we know that asthma and sinusitis and sinus headaches and so forth fall into the allergy category and those are the people who should try to protect themselves the most.
“The best way to protect yourself is to leave the area that is close to a site that is burning. We know that that may not always be easy, or it may be easier said than done. Therefore, individuals who can’t get out of the situation, many of you may have masks in your houses because you would have used masks during the COVID pandemic. If you can’t put on a mask, you have to try to lock your houses so that the influx of smoke will not affect you,” he said.
Dr George noted that smoke comprises chemicals which can lead to acute respiratory injury or a reaction that produces bronchial spasms, runny nose and itchy skin.
In recent weeks, the Ministry of Education has had to summon parents and guardians to collect their children after the institutions had to be closed prematurely.
Dr George said even though it may appear to the public that schools are being closed too frequently because of fires, “from a public health perspective, we need to make sure that people are protected.
“We know that asthma kills one or two individuals every year. So it is better to be safe than sorry. I am supportive of the Ministry of Education deciding to close schools, particularly if staff and students are reporting that the environmental conditions are affecting their health. I haven’t received any reports, but the polyclinics are always willing and able to provide any acute care,” Dr George said.
Meanwhile, the CMO recommended that schools establish a treatment plan to guide what measures should be taken to manage students or staff who may experience asthma attacks.
“I think schools should invest in some form of treatment plan for asthma because asthma is so common. Schools should have some area identified as an asthma bay so that they can give some form of acute treatment to persons who are in distress,” he said.
Director of the Barbados Meteorological Services (BMS) Sabu Best explained that there has been a significant reduction in rainfall in recent weeks, particularly in the St Philip, Christ Church, St Lucy areas and this has led to an increase in grass and cane fires due to the dry topsoil.
Best said that while the grass and cane fires usually last for a few hours, the smoke is likely to travel for many miles.
“This is going to make life a bit complex for residents in Barbados, particularly those living in St Michael and working in the Bridgetown area. We expect that these kinds of conditions are going to continue into April where grass and cane fires will be sparking off because of the dry conditions.
“There is not going to be any rainfall coming in anytime soon and I just want Barbadians to be aware that they can expect to see more fires in days to come and just be prepared. This is not an uncommon thing to be actually happening during the dry season,” Best said.
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