Hot(zone)lanta
I'm looking forward to going home to Atlanta later this month to see my family and go to DragonCon. I have done less about cosplaying than I meant to, but we'll see what can be done in the last few weeks, and I have no problems with either sticking to old costumes or spending day out of costume. So in the midst of my overall excitement about the upcoming con, I have had some thoughts. You know what else is happening this month in Atlanta besides DragonCon? Treatment of the American aid workers who came down with Ebola virus!
So, let me state at the start that I have effectively zero actual worry about any danger from the Ebola patients being brought to Atlanta for treatment. The virus is transmitted by direct contact with bodily fluids, not magic or even the air. With the attention of the world on them I’m sure that the doctors and nurses will be super strict with their safety protocols. I think treating them to the US is the right thing for the patients, and since having them just down the road from the CDC will make research easier, it may even benefit other people with Ebola eventually. It is the right thing to do, and not unduly risky to the public. I roll my eyes at those people who are panicking.
That said, the what if portion of my brain can’t help noticing that Ebola has an incubation period of 2-21 days, and it’s only 25 days until DragonCon. If a few days from now one of the healthcare workers messed up getting their equipment off and came into contact with a bit of infected bodily fluids without noticing, and if they had one of the longer incubation times, they’d be getting sick enough to transmit it but not sick enough to immediately recognize it as Ebola just in time for the con. It would be tempting for a geek in need of a break from their draining job in the hospital to ignore that fever and flu-like initial symptoms to go to DragonCon anyway. In the crowded conditions at the con, it’s very possible to come into contact with other people’s sweat. Sweat isn’t as infectious as blood or feces, but it can transmit Ebola.
This year’s con crud could be rather interesting.
Again, this is NOT something I actually worry about or think anyone else should worry about, unless that worry makes them take basic hygiene precautions, like lots of hand-washing, that also help out against the more mundane sorts of con crud. It's just sometimes my brain goes straight to the incredibly far-fetched worst case scenario and starts world-building like I'm writing a novel about it.
Hey, anyone else here going to DragonCon? :D