Dear Editor,
I note with amazement the Government's chartering of a flight to deport Abu Bakr for $4 million. They have no sense of priorities.
This against the total ineptitude with which the Government is approaching the CHIKV/Ebola fever detection at our ports of entry.
I've heard that it's too expensive to buy the Infrared, non-contact thermometers. So, on the Friday newscast I saw that donations are expected to get these for the airport staff at a price of about $30,000 each. This technology has been around in industry for years, and ones with imaging capability have also been around for many years. A brand new one, the latest model, with imaging capability and even with the ability to download the image to a computer, if so needed, lists for US$499.99 (FLIR Model TG165 Imaging IR Thermometer).
If they got five for both airports, two for the beenie-weenie international airport in St Mary, five each for the seaports in Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Falmouth, and two each for Savanna-la-Mar and similar-sized ports of entry (say 10 such), a grand total of 32-plus a couple of boxes of spare batteries (say US$200) for each unit, that would be about $16,000 for the imaging IR units. Less than one of the government's SUVs. Desperate for funds? Sell one, even the second-hand price for one of their SUVs would buy a raft of IR thermometers and spare batteries plus training (point and press the trigger, and Bing! temperature and image).
Deport the boisterous Abu Bakr with a stout policeman to accompany him down and return, economy fare cost, less than $160,000, buy 32 Infrared imaging thermometers, about $1,800,000, freight $50,000, buy $25,000 worth of batteries for each thermometer, $725,000.
Total $2,735,000 with $1,265,000 left over for incidentals and training to equal $4-million deportation cost.
Howard Chin, PE
Member
Jamaica Institution of Engineers
Deportation money could have been better spent
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I note with amazement the Government's chartering of a flight to deport Abu Bakr for $4 million. They have no sense of priorities.
This against the total ineptitude with which the Government is approaching the CHIKV/Ebola fever detection at our ports of entry.
I've heard that it's too expensive to buy the Infrared, non-contact thermometers. So, on the Friday newscast I saw that donations are expected to get these for the airport staff at a price of about $30,000 each. This technology has been around in industry for years, and ones with imaging capability have also been around for many years. A brand new one, the latest model, with imaging capability and even with the ability to download the image to a computer, if so needed, lists for US$499.99 (FLIR Model TG165 Imaging IR Thermometer).
If they got five for both airports, two for the beenie-weenie international airport in St Mary, five each for the seaports in Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Falmouth, and two each for Savanna-la-Mar and similar-sized ports of entry (say 10 such), a grand total of 32-plus a couple of boxes of spare batteries (say US$200) for each unit, that would be about $16,000 for the imaging IR units. Less than one of the government's SUVs. Desperate for funds? Sell one, even the second-hand price for one of their SUVs would buy a raft of IR thermometers and spare batteries plus training (point and press the trigger, and Bing! temperature and image).
Deport the boisterous Abu Bakr with a stout policeman to accompany him down and return, economy fare cost, less than $160,000, buy 32 Infrared imaging thermometers, about $1,800,000, freight $50,000, buy $25,000 worth of batteries for each thermometer, $725,000.
Total $2,735,000 with $1,265,000 left over for incidentals and training to equal $4-million deportation cost.
Howard Chin, PE
Member
Jamaica Institution of Engineers
Deportation money could have been better spent
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