Could the port of Dakhla be the cursed gateway through which the AH1N1 flu entered Morocco? Everything tends to suggest it. Indeed, after the death last week of a fisherman on board a trawler and the contamination of five of his colleagues, this week four new cases of infection were noted among the crew of another trawler.

The two trawlers on board which the illnesses were declared one week apart belong to two different companies. This situation leaves more than one observer perplexed, and questions are being raised about who is responsible for the spread of this epidemic among sailors working on the high seas. As usual, the local health authorities, who do not possess adequate means for the treatment of these cases, are trying to downplay them and are imposing a blackout while quarantining the personnel of the ships where the epidemic cases were identified. These authorities, like those of the health department, wishing to be reassuring, minimise the recorded cases by declaring that they are completely normal cases for this time of year.

However, there remains optimism in maritime circles, and it is hoped that the appearance of these epidemics will give the authorities food for thought and encourage them to install laboratories, or at least a laboratory equipped for analyses capable of detecting cases of viral diseases. They also hope that the infrastructure and medical personnel will be reinforced by the presence of specialists, particularly in epidemiology.