One of the peculiarities of modern football stadiums was precisely their air conditioning. The challenge of preventing the public and the players from suffering from the heat from outside, keeping the internal temperature of the venue always below 27°C, was obviously overcome.
Going to the stadium was sometimes quite uncomfortable, since the air vents were in the lower back. The 90 minutes were sometimes a torment.
These cases and the minimal prevention measures caused thousands and thousands of people to become ill with different types of respiratory diseases such as colds, flu, and even influenza and COVID-19.
Antivirals, flu medications, cough syrups, among other medications, were running out in pharmacies.
Health care centers, such as the one at the Foreign Ministry’s Mexico Center in Katara, already had lines of people seeking a doctor’s appointment.
A dangerous souvenir?
I know few people who have not gotten sick in Qatar.
Then the news appeared that has alerted the entire world, as there was an increase in cases of the so-called “camel flu” during the World Cup.
It is a serious respiratory disease with a lethality of 30%, while many cases present mild symptoms. It is known as MERS-CoV because it comes from the coronavirus family and is also spread from animals to humans. This disease is transmitted to humans through contact with infected animals, with documented cases involving camels.
The symptoms are pictures of fever, breathing difficulties, vomiting, cough and diarrhea. The problem can be aggravated by the fact that Doha receives rain from the tiny sand of the desert, which feels bad in the eyes and can cause conjunctivitis.