When 4,000 foreigners come to Lofoten and Vesterålen to work during the winter fishing season for cod, it is impossible to avoid the spread of infection, municipal doctors believe.
“There is no doubt that it is a problem and a significant risk when so many guest workers have to come in a short time. They work under conditions where it is difficult to maintain a good distance,” medical officer Ingebjørn Bleidvin in Hadsel told newspaper Dagens Næringsliv.
He pointed out that “pure statistics” indicate that the several thousand workers from abroad will lead to local infection.
“Outbreaks of infections among foreign speakers and groups who do not know society as well as us are more difficult to deal with,” he added.
He received support from municipal doctor Tor Claudi in Bodø, who believes it is “an illusion that this will not lead to more infection.”
“The question is whether one can control it,” Claudi said.
In Øksnes Municipality in Vesterålen, which will take in about 450 foreign workers, the municipal doctor and the mayor say that they are well prepared to handle infection risk.
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
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