Kiss on the cheek back as MERS panic fades

People in the Eastern Province have again started greeting friends with the traditional kiss on the cheek, and face masks in public are becoming rarer, as panic subsides over the outbreak of a deadly respiratory disease that hit the country last year.
“We continue to kiss each other when we meet relatives and friends, and we organize evenings without wearing masks or taking any precautionary measures,” said Badr Abdullah, as he bought groceries at a shopping center in Hofouf, the main city in Al-Ahsa. “At the beginning, panic hit us. But now, the situation is back to normal,” Abdullah said.
Last June, the province was hit for the first time with what became a spate of cases of what was dubbed MERS because of the high proportion of cases reported in the region, according to AFP.
But Abdullah, like many in the Eastern Province, said he believes “most of those affected are aged people who suffered chronic illnesses.”
Hospitals have taken precautionary measures, distributing masks and urging people to observe strict hygiene rules, such as washing their hands regularly, using tissues when they sneeze, and avoiding gatherings.
But pharmacist Adel Ali said that early panic had died down recently, and that sales of the face masks recommended by the health authorities had fallen. “At the beginning, people were scared. But now, the sale of masks has dropped,” he said.
Mustafa Al-Hamadeh, who studies in the US and has returned home for holidays, said he thought the fear of the virus was “exaggerated.” “I thought of canceling my trip because of information carried by media on this virus. But I noticed when I got here that the situation is normal and I have kissed all those that I met,” said the 23-year-old university student.