SARS epidemic discussed at seminar.

Building Maintenance Co. of New York, a subsidiary of ABM Industries, Inc., recently hosted a seminar for owners and property managers to provide an update on the SARS epidemic, its current exposure risks and provide practical prevention and response protocol recommendations for commercial property managers. "Our response to the SARS epidemic threat is an ongoing process designed to keep our customers both informed and prepared," said ABM executive vice president Scott Salmirs.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome has affected thousands of people, primarily in Southeast Asia, Europe and North America, causing hundreds of deaths from a viral infection that initially mimics flu-like symptoms. The good news is that SARS has largely been-contained in the U.S., with only 345 suspected cases reported nationwide though mid-May. Of those, only 64 cases have been deemed "probable" by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and only a handful of reported cases in the New York tri-state area.

The bad news, according to ABM Director of Safety Services Scott Robinson, CIH, CSP, a member of the clinical, faculty at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, is that "SARS has a tremendous potential for epidemic in that it is a rapidly changing and highly contagious virus with a long infection period and- no current vaccine."

SARS is primarily spread by close contact with infected people, direct contact with ejected droplets of infected bodily fluids through sneezing or hand contact with infected settled droplets on furniture and fixture surfaces. Fortunately, surface cleaning with Environmental Protection Agency-registered disinfectants appears to effective in killing the virus in five to 10 minutes, making close attention to property cleaning more important than ever. "While the epidemic is not over, the good news is that the epidemic appears to have peaked for now and the virus may well go into a 'quiet period,'" said Robinson.

ABM has developed an 11-point SARS Response Protocol for property managers and their cleaning contractors to serve as a guide to prevent and respond to potential SARS outbreaks. This protocol emphasizes both employee and tenant protection based on CDC's "Universal Precautions" model, similar to response plans designed to combat exposure to blood-borne pathogens such as HIV and Hepatitis. Janitor safety issues are also addressed, following the OSHA-approved Blood-borne Pathogens Standard.

To further serve their customers and the commercial real estate industry, ABM has established a web site to provide the latest, most reliable information on SARS from the CDC, World Health Organization and NYC Department of Health at www.abm.com/ sarsinformation.