Elsewhere: The cockroaches are coming

Great. Not only will cockroaches outlive us all, now they’re going to be the death of us, too. According to a BBC News report, it is suspected that cockroaches are spreading SARS.

The cockroach theory was voiced by Hong Kong Deputy Director of Health Leung Pak-yin on Monday.
He was talking about how the disease managed to spread like wildfire through an apartment block at Amoy Gardens in Kowloon.
In just a few days, more than 300 new cases arose among residents of the block.
The cases left health officials baffled and deeply concerned, as many of the 300 had had no direct contact with anyone who had Sars.
Leung said: “The drainage may be the reason.
“It is possible that the cockroaches carried the virus into the homes.”

I still remain convinced that this is one of the more worrying stories to have emerged in the last few months and yet it remains buried by wall-to-wall coverage of the Iraq War. Still, at least the WHO seems to be taking the threat seriously and doing its best to contain it.