Diesease And Terrorism In A Connected World
April 30, 2009 by national
Filed under Homeland Security News
A complacent America, growing ever less concerned about the threat of pandemic bird flu, was startled last week by the sudden appearance of a major epidemic of swine flu in neighboring Mexico. Cases were soon reported from New York, California, Texas and Ohio, as well as France, New Zealand, Canada and Britain. So far, the apprehension and confusion about what to expect resembles the early days of the anthrax attacks of 2001, when a fine powder of weaponized anthrax bacteria showed up in the U.S. mail. Then, as now, health authorities were taken completely by surprise, and the public panicked out of all proportion to the actual threat.
The similarities between the flu and biological terrorism are not coincidental. In recent years the world has changed in ways that have made the threats of natural and man-made epidemics more and more alike. As we deal with the increasing prospects of a bioterrorist attack, we are also struggling with the challenge of emerging diseases: AIDS, pandemic strains of influenza and the “mad-cow disease” that terrified Britain only a decade ago. The way these threats unfold—and the responses they call for—are becoming ever more similar.
The central driver is the increasingly interconnected world we live in.
Swine Flu – Mexico Shuts Government Says Pandemic Imminent
April 30, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
Mexico’s president told citizens on Wednesday to stay home for a five-day partial shutdown of the economy, after the World Health Organization raised its alert level and said a swine flu pandemic was imminent.
In his first televised address since the crisis erupted last week, President Felipe Calderon told Mexicans to stay home with their families. The country will suspend non-essential work and services, including some government ministries, from May 1-5.
“There is no safer place than your own home to avoid being infected with the flu virus,” Calderon said.
Mexico is taking the drastic step after another 17 deaths were potentially linked to swine flu, bringing the total to as many as 176.
Essential services such as transport, supermarkets, trash collection and hospitals will remain open.
Container Carrying Swine Flu Virus Explodes On Swiss Train
April 29, 2009 by national
Filed under Incident Reports
A container for transporting swine flu virus samples exploded on a Swiss train, authorities said Tuesday, but stressed that there was no danger to the public.
The container, which was filled with dry ice and carried samples of the H1N1 swine flu virus and was destined for Switzerland’s national influenza centre in Geneva, exploded Monday night on board a train.
A laboratory employee had picked up the samples in Zurich to transport them by train to Geneva, but the package exploded near Fribourg and Lausanne, after melting dry ice, which had been wrongly placed, caused a build-up of pressure.
Two people suffered slight injuries, police confirmed, but authorities stressed there was no danger for the public as the virus was not the mutated strain which is suspected to have caused up to 149 deaths in Mexico.
The train was halted for several hours and the 61 passengers on board the affected carriage monitored until an infection could be completely ruled out, police said.
Swine Flu – Pandemic Alert level Raised To 5
April 29, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
The World Health Organization raised its pandemic alert to 5, its second-highest level Wednesday, indicating the outbreak of swine flu that originated in Mexico is nearing widespread human infection.
Dr. Margaret Chan, the U.N. agency’s director-general, said the decision means that all countries should “immediately” activate pandemic preparedness plans.
“This change to a higher phase of alert is a signal to governments, to ministries of health and other ministries, to the pharm industry and the business community that certain actions now should be taken with increased urgency and at an accelerated pace,” Chan said.
The announcement came as the number of people infected with swine flu increased rapidly across the world, and health officials scrambled to get more information about the virus — which has no vaccine.
Phase 5 alert means there is sustained human to human spread in at least two countries. It also signals that efforts to produce a vaccine will be ramped up.
Swine Flu – First U.S. Death Is Reported
April 29, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
American authorities confirmed the first death outside of Mexico from swine flu on Wednesday, as the number of confirmed cases of the disease continued to rise in Europe.
President Obama, in a morning news conference, called on local authorities to be vigilant in reporting new suspected cases, and called on schools to consider closing temporarily if a confirmed case was reported among its students.
[...]
Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Wednesday in an interview with CNN that the first American death of the disease was a 23-month-old child in Texas. He gave no other details about the child. The death was confirmed by President Obama, who said his “thoughts and prayers” were with the child’s family.
Swine Flu Ruled Out In 1 of 2 L.A. Deaths
April 28, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
At least one of the two deaths that were under investigation by the Los Angeles County Coroners Office was not caused by swine flu, a public health official said Tuesday during a news conference.
Los Angeles County public health officer Dr. Jonathan Fielding said Tuesday during a news briefing that news reports of two possible deaths were initially “misreported.”
“One is definitely not swine flu and the other one is still being looked at,” he said. But … I wouldn’t be surprised if we have deaths associated with influenza. And, if swine flu is like seasonal influenza, we would expect that we would have some deaths associated with it.”
Coroner’s spokesman Craig Harvey told the Los Angeles Times earlier Tuesday that a Bellflower, California-hospital reported the death of a 33-year-old Long Beach man who was brought in Saturday with symptoms resembling swine flu.
Coroner’s Assistant Chief Ed Winter said Tuesday that swine flu was not found in a La Mirada man who died with flu-like symptoms.
Winter says lab testing is pending in the case of a Long Beach man, but swine flu is now not suspected.
Swine Flu – WHO Raises Pandemic Alert Level To 4
The World Health Organization has raised the pandemic alert level to 4 due to the swine flu outbreak, the highest since the scale was developed in 2005.
Read the announcement.
The scale has six phases, with 4 through 6 being the most serious:
• Phase 4 is characterized by verified human-to-human transmission of an animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus able to cause “community-level outbreaks.”
The ability to cause sustained disease outbreaks in a community marks a significant upwards shift in the risk for a pandemic. Any country that suspects or has verified such an event should urgently consult with WHO so that the situation can be jointly assessed and a decision made by the affected country if implementation of a rapid pandemic containment operation is warranted. Phase 4 indicates a significant increase in risk of a pandemic but does not necessarily mean that a pandemic is a forgone conclusion.
• Phase 5 is characterized by human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region. While most countries will not be affected at this stage, the declaration of Phase 5 is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short.
• Phase 6, the pandemic phase, is characterized by community level outbreaks in at least one other country in a different WHO region in addition to the criteria defined in Phase 5. Designation of this phase will indicate that a global pandemic is under way.
The latest WHO updates can be found here.
The Obama administration is already responding as if the outbreak were a pandemic, Janet Napolitano, head of the Homeland Security Department, told reporters earlier.
“We want to make sure that we have people where they need to be, equipment where it needs to be and, most of all, information shared at all levels,” she said. “We are proceeding as if we are preparing to a full pandemic,” she said.
Travel warnings to Mexico would remain in effect as long as swine flu is detected, she added.
Swine Flu – World Counting Down To Pandemic Says Top Virologist
April 27, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
A Chinese virologist who helped fight SARS and bird flu warned on Monday of a possible swine flu pandemic that the most populous countries in Asia, China and India, would be ill-prepared to handle.
“We are counting down to a pandemic,” said Guan Yi, a professor at the University of Hong Kong who helped trace the outbreak of SARS in 2003 to the civet cat.
“I think the spread of this virus in humans cannot possibly be contained within a short time … there are already cases in almost every region. The picture is changing every moment.”
Guan, who has been studying and tracking the spread of the H5N1 bird flu virus ever since it was discovered in people in Hong Kong in 1997, said there would be “many problems” if swine flu reached China and India, “where populations are so dense and health infrastructure is still insufficient.”
The virus, which carries swine, avian and human DNA and the designation H1N1, has already killed up to 103 people in Mexico, infected 20 in the United States and six in Canada.
There are many questions surrounding this virus, such as why it appears milder in the United States and deadlier in Mexico.
“It may seem weaker for now in the United States, but we do not know if it will get more virulent when it goes to another place as it mutates constantly,” said Guan.
Mexico Swine Flu Death Toll Rises To 103
April 27, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
The probable death toll from a swine flu epidemic in Mexico has reached 103 people, Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova announced.
The minister said on national television that the number of those hospitalized due to the epidemic stood at about 400.
The previous probable death toll, announced Saturday, stood at 81 confirmed and suspected swine flu fatalities.
Meanwhile, the number of cases under observation has reached 1,614, up from 1,324, according to the minister.
Swine Flu – U.S. Declares Public Health Emergency
April 26, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
The United States has activated an emergency plan to combat swine flu as the Obama administration announced measures Sunday to contain the sometimes deadly virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified the strain of swine flu and is prepared to distribute a quarter of the U.S. stockpile of 50 million doses of anti-viral medications in places around the country where swine flu has been located or may be expected to spread, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said in a briefing at the White House.
Travel advisories have not been issued by the State Department, Napolitano said, nor is the United States going to screen passengers on flights arriving from Mexico. She said funds have been freed up in case a larger response is needed.
Hand-washing, mask-wearing and other measures will help prevent the spread, Napolitano said explaining how the public can help slow potential contaminations.
“If you are sick, stay home,” Napolitano said. “Take all of those reasonable measures that will help us mitigate and contain” the illness.
People who are ill should not go on airplanes, to school or other places, added Dr. Richard Besser, the acting head of the CDC.
Besser said the United States is working with the World Health Organization, Canada and Mexico as well as other organizations to reduce the spread of the virus, which appears to have originated in Mexico and has resulted in up to 81 deaths there.
UK Crew Member In Hospital After Mexico Flight
April 25, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
A British Airways cabin crew member was taken to a London hospital as a precaution after developing flu-like symptoms on a flight from Mexico City, the airline said Saturday.
It was the first such reported precautionary measure in Britain since the emergence of a new flu strain that has killed up to 68 people in Mexico. It has also infected at least 11 people in the United States. The man has undergone tests, but the results are not expected back until Sunday. No other crew members or passengers on the BA242 flight into Heathrow airport were detained.
“He has flu-like symptoms and is responding well to treatment,” a hospital spokesman said in a statement.
“The patient was admitted directly to a side room and the hospital is scrupulously following infection control procedures to ensure there is no risk to any other individual in the hospital.”
Outbreak at New York City School Likely Swine Flu
April 25, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
At least eight students at a New York City high school probably have human swine influenza, but health officials said Saturday they don’t know for sure whether they have the same virus that has killed scores of people in Mexico. At least two cases of the flu have been confirmed in Kansas.
A strain of the flu has killed as many as 68 people and sickened more than 1,000 across Mexico. The World Health Organization chief said Saturday the strain has “pandemic potential” and it may be too late to contain a sudden outbreak.
New York health officials said more than 100 students at the private St. Francis Preparatory School, in Queens, had come down with a fever, sore throat and other aches and pains in the past few days. Some of their relatives have also been ill.
New York City Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said nose and throat swabs had confirmed that eight students had influenza type A, indicating probable cases of swine flu, but the exact subtypes were still unknown.
Samples had been sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta for more testing. Results were expected on Sunday.
via Source
California Has Vigorous Swine Flu Plan – Schwarzenegger
April 25, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
California has made a “rigorous and thorough” response to a new strain of flu that has killed up to 60 people in Mexico and infected eight in the United States, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said on Friday.
California, home to six of the U.S. cases, was coordinating with federal and international health experts on its plan, which includes surveillance of patients with flu-like illness, Schwarzenegger said in a statement.
Other steps the state has taken include requesting extra flu experts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and expanding lab testing and veterinary activities, he said.
California has also activated its Joint Emergency Operations Center with the Department of Public Health and been in communication with officials in Mexico.
The governor advised Californians to take “common-sense” steps to avoid contracting the flu, including covering the nose and mouth when sneezing, washing hands with soap and water often and avoiding close contact with others.
Four of Mexico’s suspected cases have been reported in Mexicali, which shares a border with California
via Reuters AlertNet – California has ‘rigorous’ flu plan -Schwarzenegger.
CDC Says Too Late To Contain U.S. Flu Outbreak
April 24, 2009 by national
Filed under National Interest
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday it was too late to contain the swine flu outbreak in the United States.
CDC acting director Dr. Richard Besser told reporters in a telephone briefing it was likely too late to try to contain the outbreak, by vaccinating, treating or isolating people.
“There are things that we see that suggest that containment is not very likely,” he said.
He said the U.S. cases and Mexican cases are likely the same virus. “So far the genetic elements that we have looked at are the same.” But Besser said it was unclear why the virus was causing so many deaths in deaths in Mexico and such mild disease in the United States.
