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NEWS > EVERYONE ELSE > HUNGARY ORDERS CHIMNEYS CLOSED TO SANTA TO PREVENT H1N1 SPREAD
HUNGARY ORDERS CHIMNEYS CLOSED TO SANTA TO PREVENT H1N1 SPREAD
December 2 2009
Washington. D.C. – While fears of H1N1 infection start to wane, the Department of Health and Human Services is urging people across the country to remain diligent in their day-to-day battle against the disease. The Department is encouraging people to
continue to get shots for the flu and taking basic precautions such as sanitizing to help prevent further spreading, especially as the traditional flu season gets underway and as the holidays approach.
The DHHS has also taken the unusual step of stepping on traditional holiday celebrations, urging parents to not allow their children to visit with shopping mall Santa Claus’ before being immunized. This follows action taken by the Hungarian government which is also taking action, albeit more extreme action, to prevent the spread of the disease from Jolly old Saint Nick. The Hungarian government has encouraged ordered all houses 
across the country to block off their chimneys come December 24th the prevent Santa Claus from entering homes. The concern, said the government, is not that
Santa would not have gotten vaccinated against the flu, but that his travels from house to house could potentially spread the disease across the country, endangering the lives of people and the economy of the country.
“For Santa Clauses, prevention is especially important as they meet lots of children in early December, and therefore they face a high risk of infection. If Santa Claus is elderly, overweight or has a chronic illness, and therefore belongs to a high risk group concerning the flu ... then getting a vaccination against the flu is particularly important,” said the state health authority on its website. “In addition, we will ensure that Santa Claus will not be allowed to travel from house to house potentially spreading disease as he goes. All chimneys must be covered by midday on the 24th. Local police will be
enforcing the covering of these chimneys and it is not negotiable. Santa will be allowed to leave presents on the front porch and parents must remove all wrapping, while wearing gloves, and dispose of the paper in an outdoor receptacle.”
Called for follow-up, Hungarian officials acknowledged that they were concerned that Santa would first stop in Slovakia before entering the country, giving added reason for the security concerns.
“This is an extreme step that obviously most countries haven’t seen fit to enforce. The concerns about mall Santa’s makes sense. They are in contact with hundreds of people a day so the possibility of something spreading is a very real concern. Prohibiting Santa from entering homes though, that’s an extreme step and could make a lot of children very unhappy,” said Scrape TV International analyst Gustav Hander. “Of course we need to protect our children and sometimes that means making them unhappy. That is the role of a 
parent, sometimes they need to tell their children no, but in this case it might just be unnecessary.”
Hungarian officials denied that they were trying to ruin Christmas but did acknowledge that it will be very difficult for children receiving perishables or pets from Santa.
“There’s a very good chance that any virus will be killed by the cold as Santa moves from house to house. The limited time that he spends in each location should also inhibit the ability of the virus to stay on clothing or on presents,” continued Hander. “That said, I would be surprised if Hungary is the only country to do this. Slovakia will likely try to one up them, that’s just the way they do things.”
Slovakian officials reportedly have never been big fans of Christmas in the first place.
Emil Uliya, International Correspondent
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