The World Health Organisation is awaiting formal confirmation from US authorities the new swine flu virus has spread significantly between people, a sign that could indicate an "imminent" influenza pandemic.
Confirmation infected people in two countries are spreading the new disease to their families or contacts in a sustained way would meet the World Health Organisation's criteria for declaring a phase 5 alert on its scale of 1 to 6. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2009/0428/breaking53.htm
"We've never had a situation like this in the world. It's the first time that a swine flu has been detected in humans. ... Evidently, no one is a world expert."
But a Seattle-based risk assessment firm, Veratect, whose clients include corporations and nonprofit organizations that operate internationally as well as some foreign governments, says it noticed something was wrong in late March.
It issued a warning to its clients on April 2 of what it said could be a worrying new flu strain in southern Veracruz state.
Veratect's chief scientist, James Wilson, said in a posting on his private blog, Biosurveillance, that the company noticed something amiss on March 30, when a lawyer fell seriously ill in Ottawa after returning from Mexico.
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/yb/129157973
EL PASO, Texas (AP) — U.S. airports and border agents waved people through Monday with little or no additional screening for Mexico's deadly swine flu — a far more muted reaction than the extreme caution elsewhere around the world. ... http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gypVZz9TCTG1Lf1snAmsMMOXCEdwD97R64300
MEXICO CITY (AP) — The swine flu epidemic entered a dangerous new phase Monday as the death toll climbed in Mexico and the number of suspected cases there and in the United States nearly doubled. The World Health Organization raised its alert level but stopped short of declaring a global emergency. The United States advised Americans against most travel to Mexico and ordered stepped up border checks in neighboring states. The European Union health commissioner advised Europeans to avoid nonessential travel both to Mexico and parts of the United States. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g8-DEMtAE9q4i4ySQ0eV_qZefmRQD97R61401
