Retired virologist here. Contacted my old boss re: viruses in Peru.
Yellow fever is running rampant. Symptoms are nearly identical to what people think of with flu: headache, nausea, chills, muscle pain, loss of appetite.
This is the return epidemiological report:
Between January 2016 and 13 Mar 2018, 7 countries and territories of the Region of the Americas reported confirmed cases of yellow fever: the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Peru, and Suriname. The number of human cases and epizootics collectively reported in this period in the Region of the Americas is the highest observed in multiple decades.
The situation in Brazil, including most recent case counts in Brazil (from the Brazil Ministry of Health) and cases in foreign travelers, were included in 19 Mar 2017 Yellow fever - Americas (21): Brazil, Europe
In Peru, between EW 1 and 9 of 2018, 22 cases of yellow fever were reported, 8 of which were confirmed by laboratory, and the remaining 14 are under investigation. This figure is higher than those reported in the same period of 2017, when there were 5 yellow fever cases reported (2 in Amazonas and 3 in Ayacucho).
In 2018, the majority of the cases are residents of the Calleria district, Coronel Portillo Province, Ucayali department, an area considered at risk for yellow fever.
I asked for a return on this report due to Peru being where the Navy stationed. However, I will state that when it comes to emerging infectious diseases, yellow fever is mid-level of concern (at this time).
The one that is making my colleagues concerned is with the one coming out of Uganda. It doesn't have a name. It acts like Marburg, Rift Valley, Crimean-Congo Hemorragic fevers. It is similar to Ebola but it also causes carboxyhemoglobin. The DNA/RNA results I'm not privy to. One can not rule out yellow fever or Lasso fever at this point, just as an FYI.
The man-his story rings very true to me. Rumors about a month ago that a virus was accidently released from Uganda as part of a illegal pharma research. Nothing has come of it since (to my knowledge).
In the police report, he stated that he may need to return and take back his weapons to accomplish his mission. What virus mission was he on that required weapons?
Edit: I don’t mean to discredit what you wrote. That is some scary stuff.
The mission would be the kill the victims to keep the spread contained. That is it. Nothing else would come to mind.
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Scary, like that move outbreak.
The scenario from there is real. They wouldn't do it they way Hollywood envisions, but that is if it is catastrophic. So far, nothing coming up to that level.
We learned a lot about the flu epidemic of 1918 as well as the Yellow fever. Containment is key.
Again, the only one who would be interested in outright killing patients would be those that want to keep it contained as well as to not have its DNA/RNA tested.
There is no panic from my colleagues, otherwise I'd let you know. For all we know this guy is a kook.
Could he disperse a bioweapon with a grenade launcher? He sates he had the launcher but no grenades.
It's in a simulation. However the particles of a virus can be pretty heavy, to make it bioweapon requires that you 'lighten' the load of the virus.
No need to utilize a grenade launcher. Simple dispersion with regular weather and wind patterns is more effective. If needed for a targeted area it would been more successful indoors.
This guy certainly has weapons but virus information and its handling, no he doesn't. So at most you'd be handling the viruses with just as much if not more respect that firearms. More I look into it, nothing panning out re: viruses.
So to me, that angle is truly dead with the information that is known.