“Hallo Tammy! This is Adriaan De Jager! Freelance reporter ... reporting to you ... live from Johannesburg, South Africa!” The man has a noticeable South African accent and emphasized his words with movements and facial expressions. This reporter appeared to have experience in stage acting.
The flamboyant reporter was apparently grabbing this chance at publicity with both hands. A minor look of annoyance flashed across Tammy’s face at his self promotion. Adriaan took no notice and continued.
“I am standing in front of the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg General Hospital.” The reporter flourished as the camera panned to Adriaan’s left and focused on the hospital. Several tall buildings can be seen, grey against a greyer background. The camera panned back to Adriaan.
“I have stood here, in the rain. All day, and into the evening now, yeah. And as I have witnessed a steady stream of water running in the gutter, I have witnessed also a steady stream of people passing me by, on their way to the hospital!” Adriaan stated dramatically.
“I have interviewed some of these people off camera, and they have all told me very similar stories, Tammy!” Adriaan paused for a moment. Tammy looked ready to speak up when he suddenly continued.
“Poisoned!” Adriaan pronounced with another flourish. “People are telling me that they believe the government has poisoned them. How else can we explain all these people getting sick at the same time. Many, many people are even telling me that their pets and livestock were getting sick as well!”
“Is this a world-wide government conspiracy? This reporter intends to find out!”
“Adriaan.” Tammy attempted to interrupt.
“I will go to de Stadsaal – or city hall-“
“Adriaan!” Tammy attempted to intervene again
“-see if I can get some answers. Wat is dit? Yes, Tammy I hear you!”
A look of exasperation showed on Tammy’s face. Adriaan waited for Tammy to speak.
“Adriaan. Please answer these questions.”
Again, there were a few seconds of delay before Adriaan responded. “Ja, Ok Tammy?”
“Approximately how many people have come down with this ailment?”
“Ek heb keen idee” Adriaan mumbled. He looked off camera. “Hoefeel mensen hebben wij gezien op ‘t ziekenhuys?” ... “Hoefeel?” ... “Oh, ok” Adriaan looked back at the camera.
“Oh, uh, Sorry Tammy I was researching. We estimate that we have seen at least five hundred people coming to this hospital today! The hospital staff is already overwhelmed by the-”
“Has there been any report of anybody dying from this ailment?”
Another pause. Adriaan looked almost comical, hiding under his umbrella.
“Um. ... No. Tammy. Nobody has perished. But maybe they’re not telling us everything he’?”
“Ok. Thank you Adriaan. We have no further questions for you. Please keep us updated with the situation in Johannesburg.”
“Yes Tammy! This has been Adriaan De Jager repo-” He managed to get out before his feed was cut.
Chapter Eleven
October 21, 6:00 P.M.
Tammy appeared on the screen for her regular broadcast of the Channel Eight News. The bold graphic above her head was singular and powerful. “Epidemic!”
“Good evening and welcome to our program. I’m Tammy Jensen. Our top story this evening:”
“The World Health Organization has officially raised the status level of the new stomach bug to ‘epidemic’.”
Tammy turned to another camera. She now took up half of the shot.
“The Center for Disease Control made the following statement.”
The words appeared beside her as she read them out.
The CDC is raising its status of this, as of yet unnamed stomach ailment, to epidemic level. The primary reasons for this being the highly contagious nature of this ailment, including suspected cross-species contamination. This current outbreak is deeply troubling, and we call upon all healthcare providers to advise patients on how best to avoid contraction of the ailment. The CDC are working together with all major health organizations world-wide, to determine the origin of this ailment, and are bringing all our combined research to bear, to find a cure. We are confident that we will find a cure.
It is important to note that the ailment affects humans as well as animals, and the spread of the ailment from animals to humans has not been ruled out.
At this point we do not see a connection between this ailment and the recent developments within the agricultural sector, but we are investigating this possibility with assistance from the United States Department of Agriculture’s research arm, the Agricultural Research Service, or ARS.
The CDC further advises the population to: Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. Stay at home if you are feeling sick – especially if you are having stomach pain. Use tissues or cough and sneeze into your arm. Do not share drinking cups, dishes or cutlery. Use hand sanitizers. Take all precautions to keep yourself from coming into contact with any other persons. We encourage all Americans to adhere to CDC guidelines in order to protect themselves, their families, and their communities.
The average viewer would hardly be alarmed with this bullet list of common practices.
The camera focused on Tammy once more. The news anchor wiped an imaginary hair from her forehead before speaking. Most viewers didn’t notice this, but it was somewhat uncharacteristic for the consummate professional.
“Our latest reports reveal that the infection has spread to Central America and Eurasia, despite the grounding of many flights worldwide.” She forced a smile. “However, there have been no deaths attributed to this disease...” Her smile faltered for a moment, as most people watching the broadcast imagined the unsaid word.
Yet.
Chapter Twelve
October 22, 12:15 P.M.
The camera captured a crowd marching in a demonstration. The picture was somewhat shaky as the camera man jostled for position to keep the reporter in the shot. All along the downtown street there are people.
The camera man and the reporter re-positioned quickly off to the side. It’s a sunny afternoon. Clear blue skies and rays of sunlight are visible overhead. The downtown buildings block most of the sun’s rays from reaching the ground. But this is no big city. There are no massive skyscrapers here, and the reporter had found a sunlit piece of
