Photoplasma Air Purifiers installed inside Putra Stadium

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KUALA LUMPUR: Four Photoplasma Air Purifiers have been installed inside Putra Stadium in a move to check the spread of  Influenza A (H1N1) during the Thomas and Uber cups finals at the venue when the tournament starts this Sunday.

BETTER BE SAFE: The Photoplasma Air Purifiers. Four have been installed inside Putra Stadium in a move to check the spread of  Influenza A (H1N1) during the Thomas and Uber cups finals at the venue when the tournament starts this Sunday.

BETTER BE SAFE: The Photoplasma Air Purifiers. Four have been installed inside Putra Stadium in a move to check the spread of Influenza A (H1N1) during the Thomas and Uber cups finals at the venue when the tournament starts this Sunday.

National Sports Institute (ISN) director-general Datuk Dr Ramlan Abd Aziz said this was the first time such a step was being taken for sports events in the country and was specially aimed at killing any H1N1 viruses that might be present inside the stadium.

“The promoter has put four purifiers, one each at every corner in the stadium. I was told the gadget is not like the normal air purifier,” he told Bernama here yesterday.

Dr Ramlan said the   gadget, produced in the US, was very effective in preventing bird flu A (H5N1) outbreaks.

He said the promoter believed it would work against the H1N1 virus as well.

The run-up to the tournament has caused concern following news that national coach Rashid Sidek, his wife and two children were confirmed H1N1 positive last week.

Dr Ramlan, however, stressed that the installation of the gadgets actually was not under ISN’s jurisdiction as the agency was only responsible for the Malaysian squad.

The overall health aspects of the tournament came under the purview of Badminton World Federation (BWF), but ISN was willing to co-operate with the organiser in the matter, he said.

He believed that the foreign teams, who have started to arrive in the country, would be scanned through the thermal imaging system at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and at their hotels for any signs of H1N1. — Bernama