TY - JOUR AU - Wei, Hsin-Yi AU - Chang, Cheng-Ping AU - Liu, Ming-Tsan AU - Mu, Jung-Jung AU - Lin, Yu-Ju AU - Dai, Yu-Tung AU - Su, Chia-ping T1 - Probable Aerosol Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through Floors and Walls of Quarantine Hotel, Taiwan, 2021 T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2022 VL - 28 IS - 12 SP - 2374 SN - 1080-6059 AB - We investigated a cluster of SARS-CoV-2 infections in a quarantine hotel in Taiwan in December 2021. The cluster involved 3 case patients who lived in nonadjacent rooms on different floors. They had no direct contact during their stay. By direct exploration of the space above the room ceilings, we found residual tunnels, wall defects, and truncated pipes between their rooms. We conducted a simplified tracer-gas experiment to assess the interconnection between rooms. Aerosol transmission through structural defects in floors and walls in this poorly ventilated hotel was the most likely route of virus transmission. This event demonstrates the high transmissibility of Omicron variants, even across rooms and floors, through structural defects. Our findings emphasize the importance of ventilation and integrity of building structure in quarantine facilities. KW - COVID-19 KW - aerosol transmission KW - quarantine hotel KW - SARS-CoV-2 KW - coronavirus disease KW - severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 KW - viruses KW - respiratory infections KW - vaccine-preventable diseases KW - Taiwan DO - 10.3201/eid2812.220666 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/28/12/22-0666_article ER - End of Reference