They I Can't Enter There!

The Fiji Director of Medical Services (Dr. P. W. Dill-Russell) has warned owners of small craft entering Fiji waters that he will prosecute them (maximum penalty is £100) if they do not enter the Colony through recog nised Ports of Entry.

There have been several recent in stances of yachtsmen calling into the Lau Group on their way to Suva from an overseas port.

The three Ports of Entry for the Colony are Suva, Lautoka and Levuka —and if coming from a malarial port, either Suva or Lautoka. Exceptions to the regulations may be made only by special arrangement with the authorities.

Dr. Dill-Russell said: “Some owners of small craft seem to be unaware that when sailing for trade or pleasure be tween the island groups, they are just as much bound by the quarantine laws and regulations as the owners of larger vessels.

“These laws have been enacted for a purpose and not merely to give annoyance to seafaring people.

“There are some very good reasons why they should be observed: (1) Small boats can carry insects which may be carriers of human or plant diseases.

There is no reason why the malaria carrying mosquito should be introduced into Fiji, an area so far free of this pest, by small ships flouting our regu lations. Those who think that such risks are so slight as to be negligible may be interested to learn that a new

mosquito, fortunately not a vector of malaria, has been introduced into Fiji during the last 18 months.

“(2) Rats are just as likely to live on small boats as on large ships and rodents are dangerous in the spread of plague and typhus.

“(3) The crew and passengers may fall sick of some infectious disease, e.g., smallpox, poliomyelitis, etc., and if this is not detected and the sufferer or sufferers isolated, the disease may be spread to people on shore.”

Dr. Dill-Russell said that within the past few weeks two small craft were known to have called at islands in the Lau Group before being inspected and declared free from infection The excuse given was that they were sheltering from bad weather.

“While this may well be true in the one case, not only did the captain and crew of another yacht go ashore, but they invited the headmaster and schoolchildren of the island’s school to visit the ship,” Dr. Dill-Russell said.

In another case while no visitors were allowed on board the crew went ashore and mingled freely with the popula tion.

Dr. Dill-Russell said he appreciated the reason why small craft should be able to shelter in bad weather but he thought that it would be very rare that contact with the shore was neces sary. The dangers to the Colony’s health that could result from flaunting the Quarantine Regulations would not, In future, be tolerated.