Abu Dhabi, Mar 7: A fire broke out at dawn at Abu Dhabi Marina Yacht Club breakwater, with the Ministry of Interior confirming the incident on its social media account.
Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, was personally at the site to oversee the emergency procedures.
Details have yet to be determined on cause of blaze and whether anyone was injured in the incident.
French Nobel prize winning scientist Luc Montagnier has sparked a fresh controversy by claiming that the SARS-CoV-2 virus came from a lab, and is the result of an attempt to manufacture a vaccine against the AIDS virus.
In an interview given to French CNews channel and during a podcast by Pourquoi Docteur, professor Montagnier who co-discovered HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) claimed the presence of elements of HIV in the genome of the coronavirus and even elements of the "germ of malaria" are highly suspect, according to a report in Asia Times.
"The Wuhan city laboratory has specialized in these coronaviruses since the early 2000s. They have expertise in this area," he was quoted as saying.
The theory that Covid-19 virus originated in the lab is making rounds for quite some time.
US President Donald Trump last week acknowledged Fox News report that the novel coronavirus may have been accidentally leaked by an intern working at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.
The Fox News, in an exclusive report, based on unnamed sources has claimed that though the virus is a naturally occurring strain among bats and not a bioweapon, but it was being studied in Wuhan laboratory.
The initial transmission of the virus was bat-to-human, the news channel said, adding that the "patient zero" worked at the laboratory. The lab employee was accidentally infected before spreading the disease among the common people outside the lab in Wuhan city.
Professor Montagnier was awarded the 2008 Nobel Prize in Medicine for the identification of AIDS virus, with his colleague professor Franeoise Barre-Sinoussi.
His fresh claim on coronavirus, however, received criticism from scientists, including his colleagues.
"Just in case you don't know. Dr Montagnier has been rolling downhill incredibly fast in the last few years. From baselessly defending homeopathy to becoming an antivaxxer. Whatever he says, just don't believe him," tweeted Juan Carlos Gabaldon.
As per a recent Washington Post, two years ago, the US embassy officials in China raised concerns about the insufficient biosafety at the Chinese government's Wuhan Institute of Virology where deadly viruses and infectious diseases are studied.
Though the institute, located quite close to the Wuhan wet market, is China's first biosafety level IV lab, the US state department had warned in 2018 about "serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory".
Mangaluru, June 28: Three fresh deaths in last 24 hours have taken the total number of covid-19 deaths in Dakshina Kannada district to 13.
While a 31-year-old youth from Idya in Surathkal and a 57-year-old woman from Bantwal passed away last night, a 52-year-old woman from Jokatte breathed her last today.
The youth from Suratkal breathed his last in Wenlok. The woman from Bantwal’s Loretto Padav village was unwell for last 1 year. She was tested positive three days ago and passed away at a private hospital.
The woman from Jokatte was reportedly suffering from tuberculosis. On June 26, she was admitted to a private hospital in the city, where she was tested coronavirus positive.
As per the district health bulletin on Saturday June 27 evening, a total of 12,919 samples have been sent for tests till date, out of which 12,198 have turned out negative, and 576 positive, including 10 persons from other districts.
Out of these, 148 are currently active. As many as 416 persons have recovered and been discharged.
Mangaluru, Jul 24: Low-cost airline IndiGo airlines would be operating between Mumbai and Mangaluru four days a week - Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. The operation will begin today (July 24).
The flight will take off from Mumbai at 9.30 am and will land at Mangaluru International Airport at 11.00 am.
The flight will take off from Mangaluru at 11.40 am and will reach Mumbai at 1.15 pm. To avail the flights for Mangaluru, passengers can report to Terminal T2 in Mumbai.
Before boarding the flight, a standard procedure regarding quarantine regulation has been issued. The passengers boarding the flight from Mumbai will have to undergo thermal screening at the airport. The airport officials will also be required to apply a quarantine stamp on the passengers.
The airline will be required to provide a detailed list of passengers arriving, along with flight information, arrival time, mobile number of the passengers and their residential addresses and share these with the nodal officer.
It is mandatory for the passengers to download Aarogya Setu app. In addition to this, passengers intending to exit Mumbai within seven days of the arrival should be able to produce a confirmed ticket for onward/return journey to get quarantine exemption.
Domestic passengers will have to undergo 14 days of home quarantine. However, all domestic passengers intending to exit Mumbai within seven days of the arrival will be exempted from quarantine, provided they are able to produce a confirmed ticket for onward/return journey.
Comments
On new year day also they had fire disaster...its quite natural up there once in one or two months....it looks like builders don't maintain safety standards at all....looks bad....need to see that the worlds biggest building, Khalifa tower has got required satisfying safety items or not...
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