NZ Auckland confirmed cases April 26+

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ: Auckland students tested for swine flu

Re: NZ: Auckland students tested for swine flu

hattip KBD

New Zealand on Watch for Swine Flu on Tourist Industry Concern

By Tracy Withers
April 27 (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand officials have increased monitoring of travelers arriving from the U.S. for symptoms of swine flu after signs that 10 local students who recently visited Mexico may have the disease.
The students are “highly likely” to have the disease, Health Minister Tony Ryall said in an interview yesterday. New Zealand’s dollar fell amid concerns that an outbreak may curb tourism, which makes up 10 percent of the local economy.
The World Health Organization has called the outbreak a “public health emergency of international concern” and as many as 81 deaths in Mexico were linked to the virus, normally transmitted among pigs. Twenty cases in the U.S., all of them mild, have been connected as well as the New Zealand cases, which have yet to be confirmed.
“This is the last thing the global economy needs right now,” said Khoon Goh, senior economist at ANZ National Bank Ltd. in Wellington. “At the moment, it doesn’t look as bad as avian flu or SARS. It seems to be well contained.”
New Zealand’s dollar bought 56.80 U.S. cents at 9:40 a.m. in Wellington trading from 57.21 cents in late New York trading on April 24.
“Tourism numbers to New Zealand have already slumped because of the global recession,” said Goh. “This could add more stress on the hospitality and global travel industries.”
In 2003, an outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic, killed 774 people of 8,098 infected globally, and led to a 9.4 percent slump in international arrivals in Asia and the Pacific, according to World Tourism Organization figures.
Airport Checks
Doctors and nurses have been at Auckland’s international airport since yesterday meeting flights arriving from Los Angeles and San Francisco, Julia Peters, clinical director of the Auckland Regional Public Health Service, told Television New Zealand.
Passengers are being told that if they develop flu symptoms to contact their local doctor or, if they are tourists, to contact a hospital, Peters said.
Twenty two students and three teachers from an Auckland high school who spent three weeks in Mexico on a language trip returned to New Zealand early on April 25. Ten of the students aged 15 to 18 years tested positive for Influenza A. The swine flu is a form of Influenza A.
“We don’t know for sure if it is, but it is highly likely they have it,” Ryall said. “The symptoms are not severe and most are on the road to recovery.”
The affected students and their families have been isolated at home, he said. Test samples have been sent to a World Health Organization laboratory in Melbourne for analysis.
Officials are now contacting about 360 passengers who were on the same Air New Zealand Ltd. flight as the infected students, said Peters. A group of students from a second Auckland high school, who also were in Mexico, arrived yesterday and have been contacted, she said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Tracy Withers in Wellington at twithers@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: April 26, 2009 18:02 EDT

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aVRSl8iU1zzU&refer=home

 

[tropical]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

#1: ...

This moment I was watching the reporter from Auck. on CNN telling that only the students with symptoms were quarantined, and the others was left free with the remark that they goes to the doctor if got the symptoms after!

The symptom ones and the others were on the same flight.

Now, what is here going on:
what kind of quarantine for the arrival flights from the plagued zone is, if the meds left them mixing with other peoples, when it is cristal clear that all them are potentialy exposed to the virus in the same plain?!

That's why it called it quarantine - no one can left of the vehicle (even in ancient time ships/caravans) without all of the passengers constricted to live in an isolated place for 40 days at the time, 21 today, or at least an esigue 10 days because of the near 7 days possible incubation!

Sorry to the folks, this is all useless.

They allowed that potentialy incubated patients spread it further in an island - instead of have full measures, and not only here, seems it that almost everywhere is implemented the "fast spreading by airplain" option instead of quarantines.

Actualy this is the proclamed previous policy of "the plains would not be grounded", and "business will going on under pandemic",
no voice or words more ...

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Rangitoto College teacher in hospital with flu symptoms

The teacher is the second person from the group to be sent to hospital for treatment The teacher is the second person from the group to be sent to hospital for treatment
Mon, 27 Apr 2009 10:18a.m.

One of the teachers in the Rangitoto College group who returned from Mexico on Saturday has been admitted to hospital with flu symptoms.

The school group has sparked national health emergency planning procedures by testing positive for Influenza A after their trip to Mexico, where the potentially deadly swine flu is sweeping the country and starting to spread around the world.

The teacher is the second person from the group to be sent to hospital for treatment.

The first was admitted over the weekend but has now been discharged after being treated with antivirals, a Ministry of Health spokesman said.

New Zealand health authorities are now waiting on further test results from the World Health Organisation (WHO) laboratory in Melbourne to confirm whether the school students have the particular strain that is swine flu.

The students, teachers and their families are now in home quarantine for an unspecified period of time.

Mexican officials have put the death toll from the new flu strain at 86, with 1400 sick, while cases have been reported in the United States, Canada, Spain, and France.

The Rangitoto College group returned to Auckland from Los Angeles on Air New Zealand flight NZ1, arriving at 5am on Saturday.

The flight carried 364 passengers plus crew.

Clinical director of the Auckland Regional Public Health Service, Julia Peters, said while the weekend focus was on managing the sick school students, her staff would today be following up with other passengers.

"Now that we know that this is an influenza A virus, possibly the swine flu virus, our attention will definitely be turning to all the contact tracing."

All passengers arriving in New Zealand from North America are now being screened and given information about the flu.

They are also completing passenger locator cards so they can easily be contacted if required.

"So far, touch wood, things appear to be relatively under control," said Steve Brazier, the Health Ministry's national co-ordinator for emergency planning.

If the situation deteriorated, the ministry would "ramp up" its response, moving from code yellow into the code red phase.

This would involve far more intensive work at border entry points, ring-fencing outbreaks within New Zealand, and continuing to treat patients with Tamiflu.

The effectiveness of Tamiflu on swine flu was not yet confirmed, but reports from Mexico indicated it was effective.

NZPA

http://tvnz.co.nz/health-news/factbox-how-swine-flu-spread-2676417

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Reuters<!--Spacer-->

• WATCH the video (2:27)

Health authorities are confident that if swine flu is in New Zealand, it will not be as bad as it has been in Mexico.

Ten Rangitoto College students who returned at the weekend from a school trip to Mexico have tested positive to Influenza A and authorities say it is highly likely it will be swine flu.



A press conference was held at the Ministry of Health in Wellington on Monday morning, in which health officials said that they are taking a "belt and brace approach" to finding other passengers on flight NZ1, the flight the Rangitoto group was on.


When questioned by media as to why the process of trying to find other passengers did not start earlier Director of Public Health Dr Mark Jacobs says it wasn't until late on Sunday that it was known that the students had influenza and prior to that it could have been simply a cold.


"Many of you would know from experience how common it is to get symptoms of a cold after spending a long time on a plane ...so it was really only late yesterday (Sunday) that we knew it was any form of influenza," says Jacobs.


He says it then became more necessary to follow up other people from the plane.


The Ministry of Health says only a small group of people are likely to have had contact with the students and a team from the Ministry are contacting people using passenger cards. If they are feeling unwell the passengers will receive Tamiflu.


Pandemic Planning Coordinator Steve Brazier says there are no problems with the New Zealand's Tamiflu stocks and they currently they have 1.2 million doses of the drug.


He says although a small amount will expire later this year the bulk of the Tamiflu supplies will be useable for some years to come.


Anti-viral medication has a limited shelf life and has been stocked ever since bird flu fears were raised several years ago.


Jacobs says it is unlikely the virus could spread through an entire plane infecting all on board. He says in theory it could be spread via plane toilets but the less direct contact people have had with infected people on the flights the lower risk they have.


Every precaution taken

Prime Minister John Key says every precaution is being taken in New Zealand against swine flu.


"I think New Zealanders can be confident that the government has a plan, that plan was put in place quite a number of years ago when we were concerned about avian bird flu," he told TVNZs Breakfast prgramme.


Key says the government is invoking its flu plan and health officials have hiked the potential influenza epidemic status to yellow, just below the code red response phase.


Key is urging people who have recently been in affected areas to seek medical advice if thet are not feeling well.


The World Health Organisation has declared swine flu a public health emergency of international concern. It has also ordered worldwide surveillance and vigilance at international borders.

So far, the majority of suspected cases in Mexico City have been given a clean bill of health, but over 80 have died from the illness.

There are also 20 confirmed cases in the United States, and four in Canada.

The virus appears to have made it to Europe, with two suspected cases in Scotland and three in Spain.

Health authorities in Asia have mobilised, increasing screening at major airports, and putting hospitals on high alert.
The New Zealand Medical Association is offering to lend a hand with the potential outbreak of swine flu.
Chairman Dr Peter Foley says the association has contacted the Health Ministry to offer any assistance it can. He says there is a national plan in place and each District Health Board has a previously-prepared pandemic plan.
Foley says it is good news the risk has been promptly identified.
The Medical Association understands there is no need for any public panic and it will assist general practice teams to assess and treat patients as safely and promptly as possible.


http://tvnz.co.nz/health-news/health-officials-optimistic-over-flu-outbreak-2677468

 

[Legadillo]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

NZ teacher hospitalised for flu, more students tested

WELLINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) - A New Zealand teacher just returned from Mexico was being treated in hospital with flu-like symptoms, as three students from a second school party were also showing symptoms, health officials said on Monday.

The teacher was part of a group of 25 from an Auckland secondary school that spent three weeks in Mexico, and was expected to be discharged later in the day.

Ten from that group have been confirmed as having Influenza A and are being treated as likely swine flu sufferers. One of the pupils had also been briefly hospitalised for treatment.

"The remaining members of the party are being treated at home and remain in isolation," the Ministry of Health said in a statement.

The result of tests on the school party to see if they have the H1N1 flu strain are expected by Tuesday from a World Health Organisation laboratory in Australia.

The affected students have been treated with the drug Tamiflu and stocks have been released to cope with any further cases.

Initial tests on a group of 14 from a second school in Auckland, which had also just returned from Mexico, have shown three with signs of Influenza-A.

Public health officials were also tracing passengers on the same flight from Los Angeles as the affected students.

New Zealand has raised the level of its national pandemic disease plan with increased checks of incoming international flights.

"All passengers arriving into New Zealand from the Americas are being screened and are receiving public health messages," the Ministry said.

The deadly swine flu strain has killed up to 86 people in Mexico and infections have also been found in the United States and Canada, with possible infections also discovered in Europe. (Reporting by Gyles Beckford, Editing by Dean Yates)

 

[Dark Horse]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Hi Rachael,

Can we assume that each of these individuals was infected from the same Mexican source? Or is there any indication the student/teacher group had some intramural infections?

NZ teacher hospitalised for flu, more students tested

WELLINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) - A New Zealand teacher just returned from Mexico was being treated in hospital with flu-like symptoms, as three students from a second school party were also showing symptoms, health officials said on Monday.

The teacher was part of a group of 25 from an Auckland secondary school that spent three weeks in Mexico, and was expected to be discharged later in the day.

Ten from that group have been confirmed as having Influenza A and are being treated as likely swine flu sufferers. One of the pupils had also been briefly hospitalised for treatment.

"The remaining members of the party are being treated at home and remain in isolation," the Ministry of Health said in a statement.

The result of tests on the school party to see if they have the H1N1 flu strain are expected by Tuesday from a World Health Organisation laboratory in Australia.

The affected students have been treated with the drug Tamiflu and stocks have been released to cope with any further cases.

Initial tests on a group of 14 from a second school in Auckland, which had also just returned from Mexico, have shown three with signs of Influenza-A.

Public health officials were also tracing passengers on the same flight from Los Angeles as the affected students.

New Zealand has raised the level of its national pandemic disease plan with increased checks of incoming international flights.

"All passengers arriving into New Zealand from the Americas are being screened and are receiving public health messages," the Ministry said.

The deadly swine flu strain has killed up to 86 people in Mexico and infections have also been found in the United States and Canada, with possible infections also discovered in Europe. (Reporting by Gyles Beckford, Editing by Dean Yates)

 

[flutrackers@cool.fr.nf]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Maybe one of the moderators can create Subforums for Europe, South America, and Asia, etc. tracking like we have for USA and Mexico as it is becoming quite difficult to follow in the current forum organization....just a thought....

 

[kiwibird]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

No one has reported the exact symptoms exhibited by these students, but it must have been very mild initially for the authorities to assume they only had a cold/snuffle from being in an aeroplane for so long. Obviously not violent nausea...etc. Perhaps others in their party had already had this flu and been affected differently as the Principal did say they had had their share of stomach upsets (which they put down to a different diet)

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Maybe one of the moderators can create Subforums for Europe, South America, and Asia, etc. tracking like we have for USA and Mexico as it is becoming quite difficult to follow in the current forum organization....just a thought....

I'm having some difficulty also. I made that suggestion last night, but as was said the forum format is attempting to fit the news - which is rapidly changing.

.

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

The Rangitoto College group at the centre of a swine flu alert originally thought they might be having a bad reaction to Mexican food.

Nine students and one teacher in the 25-strong party which arrived back in Auckland on Saturday morning after three weeks in Mexico have tested positive for influenza A.

Health officials believe it is likely they have swine flu, a strain of influenza A which has killed an estimated 103 people in Mexico.
The teacher stayed in North Shore Hospital overnight due to the symptoms of the disease, but she was expected to be discharged later today. A student was admitted on Saturday but has since been discharged.

All the infected students and their families have been quarantined at their homes.

The other students and teachers on the trip stayed home today as a precaution, while five students who played soccer with one of the returning students - who had no symptoms - were also sent home today as a precaution.

Three students from Northcote College who went on a separate trip and arrived back on a separate flight were also awaiting test results today.

Rangitoto College principal David Hodge said most of those believed to have the disease were responding well to doses of the anti-influenza drug, Tamiflu.

Mr Hodge has been constantly in touch with parents, health authorities and media since discovering the students may have contracted the disease on a three-week trip to Mexico.

"I became aware on Saturday that the kids had arrived home safely but aware that there had been illness on the trip," he told NZPA.
"Originally it was put down to Mexican food, which seemed like a good guess at the time."

The group were Spanish language students having three weeks in Mexico to give them language and cultural experience.

It was the first time the college had sent students there in the three years Mr Hodge had been principal. It had been in the planning for two years and required substantial fund raising.

The group arrived in Mexico City and did a loop around the central part of the country before spending their last three days back in Mexico City, where the outbreak had centred.

The students arrived back in New Zealand about 5am on Saturday and Mr Hodge was made aware of their illness soon after.
By noon public health authorities were in action, and 13 people with symptoms were tested.

Ten tested positive to influenza A, and were waiting for notice of test results from Melbourne to see if it was swine flu.
"We are not overly concerned about the state of health of any of the students," he said.

"We were a bit concerned about the teacher because she remained in hospital overnight, but she is being well looked after."

With all those who went on the trip being kept at home on public health advice, along with those closely connected to them and those involved in the Saturday soccer match, it had been business as usual at the school today.

"We have had a fair share of concern from parents wanting information, which is absolutely understandable," he said.

"What we don't want is for fear to take over."

Northcote College students were not due to return to school until tomorrow due to a previously scheduled teacher-only day.

Principal Vicki Barrie said all of a 15-strong party which went to Mexico were contacted yesterday, and of them two students and a parent reported a mild sore throat. They had since been tested and were awaiting results.

All of those who went on the touring party had been asked to stay at home but families of those who had not reported any illness had been allowed by public health authorities to return to work, Ms Barrie told NZPA.

Unlike the Rangitoto College group, most of the Northcote group spent little time in Mexico City.

"They arrived in Mexico City and then travelled through Mexico and they left from Cancun," Ms Barrie said.

"They came home on a different flight than the Rangitoto College party and arrived home at a different time on Saturday morning."

There have been cases confirmed in five American states and in Canada, and suspected cases in France, as well as here, though it is only in Mexico that they have proved fatal.

The teacher is the second person to be hospitalised in New Zealand and is likely to have swine flu.

Attempts are being made to contact other passengers who were onboard the Air New Zealand flight with the infected school group.
“If anybody who’s travelled to North America or Mexico has flu-like symptoms, please be in touch with your GP,” Healthy Minister Tony Ryall urges.

Health authorities are working to contact other passengers who flew to New Zealand yesterday with the group of infected students.
“We've taken action of moving from what they call code white to code yellow, which is an increased level of national surveillance,” says Mr Ryall.


SWINE FLU OUTBREAK - STATISTICS: - Deaths: 103, all in Mexico. 22 confirmed as swine flu, 81 suspected.

- Sickened: 1,614 in Mexico, suspected or confirmed; 20 confirmed in US; 6 confirmed in Canada; 13 suspected in New Zealand; 7 suspected in Spain; 1suspected in France; 1 suspected in Israel; 1 suspected in Brazil.

- Locations in Mexico: 17 states, including Mexico City, Mexico State, Veracruz, Oaxaca, Baja California and San Luis Potosi. Some, including Oaxaca, Mexico City and Baja California, have tourist areas, but authorities have not said where in these states the outbreaks occurred.

- Locations in US: 8 in New York, 7 in California, 2 in Kansas, 2 in Texas and 1 in Ohio.

- Safety measures in Mexico: In Mexico City, surgical masks given to subway passengers, public events cancelled, schools and public venues closed and church services postponed. President Felipe Calderon has assumed new powers to isolate infected people. World Bank is providing Mexico with more than US$200 million in loans to help with the outbreak.

- Safety measures worldwide: Airports screening travellers from Mexico and United States for flu symptoms. China, Russia, Taiwan and Bolivia plan to put anyone with symptoms under quarantine. Hong Kong and South Korea warn against travel to Mexico City and three provinces. Italy, Poland and Venezuela advised citizens to postpone travel to affected areas of Mexico and the United States. Some countries increasing screening of pigs and pork imports or banning them outright.

- Safety measures in US: Roughly 12 million doses of Tamiflu being moved from federal stockpile to be delivered to states. Travellers at border asked about travel to flu-stricken areas. St. Francis Preparatory School in New York City, where eight cases are confirmed, closed Monday and Tuesday. St Mel's Catholic School in Fair Oaks, California, closed until at least Thursday as officials investigate possible infection of seventh-grader. Fourteen schools in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District in Texas, including high school where two cases are confirmed, closed for at least the next week.
AP / 3 News / NZPA

http://www.3news.co.nz/News/Nationa...abid/423/articleID/101349/cat/64/Default.aspx

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

hat tip friend of FT -


Mexican Swine Influenza - Update Three

This follows statements from the Auckland Regional Public Health unit and the Minister of Health last night.

The Ministry has been advised a second member of the Rangitoto school party which travelled to Mexico (a teacher) has been admitted to hospital with flu symptoms. We will advise further details when they come to hand.

Another member of the Rangitoto party had been admitted over the weekend, but has now been discharged upon receiving treatment with antivirals.

A total of two people have now been admitted to hospital. The remaining members of the party are being treated at home and remain in isolation.

All passengers arriving into New Zealand from the Americas are being screened and are receiving public health messages at Auckland Airport that they should contact a health professional if they are displaying flu-like symptoms. They are also completing passenger locator cards so they can easily be contacted if required.

Medical staff are now on site at Auckland Airport and have been since flights began arriving early this morning.

Auckland Public Health officials have begun the process of contact tracing passengers who arrived on Air New Zealand flight NZ1 early on Saturday morning, along with several students from Rangitoto College.

Members of the public who have travelled to Mexico or North America in the last fortnight should contact Healthline (0800 611 116) for information regarding the situation. They should seek medical advice if they are displaying flu-like symptoms.

A media conference will be held at 10am today. This advisory precedes all other advice issued this morning.

Venue: Level 2, Ministry of Health, 1 The Terrace, Wellington.
Time: 10:00am
In attendance: Health Minister Tony Ryall, Dr Mark Jacobs, Director of Public Health and Steve Brazier, National Co-ordinator, Pandemic Planning


http://www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/indexmh/mexican-swine-influenza-update-three-270409?Open

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

I'm having some difficulty also. I made that suggestion last night, but as was said the forum format is attempting to fit the news - which is rapidly changing.

.

I just figured out that pressing the red button gives me ALL the threads, while pressing the "swine flu info" button gives me SF info + all the SF threads. This little missed detail removes some of my confusion.

.

 

[tropical]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases

...
Auckland Public Health officials have begun the process of contact tracing passengers who arrived on Air New Zealand flight NZ1 early on Saturday morning, along with several students from Rangitoto College.
...

They were just folowing the standard practice for "usual" infectious agents which can be ring quarantined, but doing this with an flu virus is nonsense - because at the precise moment they left gone out from quarantine somebody exposed, they expose all the anonymous street, etc., contacts, and this cannot be tracking and isolating with an virus which transmission schedule seems to be 1-2 days.

To maybe try to go near responding at a question posed by Dark Horse in an previous post here at #26:
"Can we assume that each of these individuals was infected from the same Mexican source? Or is there any indication the student/teacher group had some intramural infections?"

seems to me, and I think that the others saw this coincidence, that having all this groups of travelers from diferent Mexico locations back worldwide revealed mostly infected only a day or two after, could point to:
- an enormous number of mexican infected, or
- throughout infections aquired an mass from the mexican plain hubs, or
- it spread as a cold - it is airborne than.
For this we have some inditions from the initial mex. dr. reports of "transmiting by a breath", and from the great possibility that the mex. strain incubation could be shorter, few days instead of a week;
We see that in NZ - even a parent of an home quarantined only yesterday lended became sick - how if the incubation "is 7 days" - when the folks came back during this 2-3 weekend days, so it can be only few days, that's why it is so fast in globetrotting.

In any case maybe somebody now appure the facts now when everybody would have theirs own country infection groups ...

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Swine Flu symptoms reported throughout New Zealand

Mon, 27 Apr 2009 6:30p.m.

Swine Flu symptoms are now being reported throughout New Zealand from Auckland to Otago, and the Government says it is treating the scare as if it's the real thing.

3 News has been told that a number of Air New Zealand crew now have symptoms, and health officials have tracked down two thirds of the passengers on Saturday's NZ1 flight, which carried the students from Auckland's Rangitoto College who first showed symptoms.

While then ten confirmed Rangitoto cases are just Influenza A, whether they, or any other case, is more serious won't be known until swine flu tests in Melbourne have been completed.

Staff and students of Rangitoto College spoken to by 3 News say they are feeling a lot better than when they first arrived back from Mexico.

They're being treated with Tamiflu medication, and apart from the odd niggle with a sore throat or minor flu-like symptoms, everyone looks to be on the mend.

It seems the most concerning thing they say they are having to deal with is learning to deal with life confined to the four walls of home quarantine.

"We've been told to have good ventilation, which means we have to have the windows open, but otherwise we're not to see people and not to go outside," Rangitoto College teacher Charlotte Calvert told 3 News. "S ome families have told me that they're going to be shopping online for the next couple of days."

Ms Calvert may have to stay in quarantine for a week, or at least until tests clear her of swine flu.

She describes the whole experience as bizarre and says while the group knew about the flu strain in Mexico, they didn't feel it was any threat to them.

"We had people feeling unwell during the trip but we put that down to diarrhea and vomiting that people have when they're overseas," Ms Calvert says.

Today more students were pulled from the school because they played soccer on Saturday with a student who had been on the Mexico trip.

"There are five other boys who were in the same soccer team," Rangitoto College Principal David Hodge says. "We've taken their details, we've sent them home, asked them to stay at home and we'll be giving their details to the public health authorities."

And while it was school as normal for the rest of the Rangitoto students today, it was far for it for Mr Hodge.

"We've had calls from the States, I mean it's very strange for a school in New Zealand to headline CNN News, BBC, ABC, so there is a lot of interest out there," Mr Hodge says. "Obviously this is a worldwide health scare and we have unfortunately become the focus of that."

Meanwhile 14 students, two parents and two teachers from Auckland's Northcote College are undergoing tests, after returning from Mexico.

The group arrived back in New Zealand on Saturday morning on flight NZ5.

The tests were carried out after two students and one of the parents reported having a sore throat.

Results from their influenza test are expected later tonight.

3 News

http://www.3news.co.nz/News/Swine-F...abid/209/articleID/101415/cat/87/Default.aspx

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

a number of Air New Zealand crew now have symptoms

If those symptoms occured after the students' flight, SF spread may be a function of number of flights X passengers per flight.

hopefully it's a mild strain.

.

 

[tropical]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

If those symptoms occured after the students' flight, SF spread may be a function of number of flights X passengers per flight.

hopefully it's a mild strain.

.

You can bet that it would be near that.

And now, when they all by plains imported the illness -
to an island, which could be spared for now totaly - with plain grounding, and no returnings on the island, with ship quarantining off shore,
they (the other countries did the same) sentenced:
"it is treating the scare as if it's the real thing"

now, when all is loosed at the start.

Only the "mid/weakened" option could spare us!

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Swine flu concerns spread nationwide

Otago, Nelson, Waikato, Auckland outbreak fears

At least four district health boards are battling a suspected swine flu outbreak, as the Prime Minister warns Kiwis to think very carefully before travelling to Mexico.

Health Minister Tony Ryall said this afternoon that Otago District Health Board was also dealing with suspected cases of swine flu - adding to two possible cases reported in Waikato and further cases in the Nelson-Tasman region.

Cases of Influenza A were confirmed in Auckland yesterday in 10 Rangitoto College pupils who had been staying in Mexico. Officials say it is "likely" they have contracted swine flu.

The college group had originally thought they might be having a bad reaction to Mexican food, Rangitoto College principal David Hodge said.

At least three students from a second school group, Northcote College - which also returned from Mexico on Saturday - have also exhibited flu-like symptoms. Officials are likely to find out today if those pupils have also contracted Influenza A.

Mr Ryall said officials were treating all cases as if they had swine flu and administering Tamiflu. There are currently 1.25 million Tamiflu treatment courses in New Zealand, though some of the stock would expire later this year.

Prime Minister John Key said this afternoon that while there was not a travel ban in place for Mexico "people should think very cautiously about visiting."

He said there was some suggestion that if visitors became unwell they may be stopped from leaving Mexico.

It has emerged this afternoon that a number of passengers on board Air New Zealand Los Angeles flight NZ1 - carrying the 10 influenza-infected Rangitoto College students - are now in isolation.

Mr Ryall said this afternoon that two thirds of the passengers on NZ1 had been contacted by health officials for follow-up checks.

A team of 25 was making contact with the passengers. Once completed passengers on board NZ5 - the flight carrying the Northcote College pupils - would also be contacted, Mr Ryall said.

Mexican officials today put the death toll from the new swine flu strain at over 100, with about 1600 sick, while cases have also been reported in the United States, Canada, Spain and France.

Nelson Marlborough Public Health Service said this evening they were following up 10 people from flight NZ1 as well as eight people from flight NZ5.

District manager Peter Bassett said 20 people had so far been identified across the Nelson-Marlborough district "and are in home quarantine until further notice."

Waikato District Health Board said this afternoon it was investigating two possible cases of swine flu. In both cases the patients had been isolated within their homes until test results for Influenza A come back within the next 24 hours.

PASSENGER DISAPPOINTED AT RESPONSE

A Christchurch father onboard NZ1 from Los Angeles, who did not want to be named, said he was disappointed with the response from health officials. "I'm a bit hacked off with the Department of Health."

Since visiting an emergency 24-hour doctor surgery he had had no contact with health officials.

He had purchased two courses of Tamiflu at a cost of $160, which he planned to take as a precaution.

"I just want to eliminate any risks," he told Stuff.co.nz this afternoon.

He believed Tamiflu treatment for the 360-odd passengers on board NZ1 should be mandatory, particularly as there was a stockpile of 1.2 million Tamiflu treatments following the 2003 Sars outbreak.

"They could stamp it out for the [nearly] 400 people onboard. But potentially by now they could have tens-of-thousands of people exposed to it."

He had not been sitting near the 22 Rangitoto College pupils and three teachers on flight NZ1, but had checked-in alongside the sombrero-wearing group, returning from a language trip to Mexico.

HEALTH OFFICIALS RESPOND:

Director of Public Health Dr Mark Jacobs said it was possible the virus could be spread through toilet contamination on board the flight if the affected party members had not washed their hands, but overall the risk of infection spread was relatively low.

Testing on the Influenza A-positive results from Rangitoto pupils will begin in Melbourne today with officials poised to upgrade infection control measures, if needed. "We're going to continue dealing with it as if it's swine flu until we're told it's not," Dr Jacobs said.

"Additional measures may involve greater surveillance," Mr Ryall said.

Influenza A-positive tests results were being sent to Melbourne as that was where laboratories that meet World Health Organisation testing standards were based.

He stressed however that New Zealand was heading into the flu season and the great majority of Kiwis who may have flu symptoms "have just got a cold".

"This [advice] is specifically about people who have been in Mexico and the US in the past couple of weeks and they've

developed symptoms."

Dr Jacobs said the situation was very different in Mexico compared with the US. "We still don't know if the deaths in Mexico are related to this particularly type of infection [swine flu] or not." He said only 19 tests had been carried out on the many suspected cases of swine flu in Mexico.

The situation in the US was encouraging with patients mainly suffering "a mild flu-like illness," Dr Jacobs said.

Director-General of Health Stephen McKernan said New Zealand was one of the first to identify the potential swine flu outbreak and he predicted other countries would also discover such cases in the coming days.

Dr Jacobs said there were two main factors that lead health officials to believe swine flu was "likely". "Firstly, the fact that it's Influenza A... The second is the link to Mexico and the fact they are coming out of their influenza season." If the flu had been contracted while the pupils were visiting in winter - Mexico is currently moving into summer - it would be of less concern, he said.

'FREAKY' SITUATION

One of the sick Rangitoto high school students, who has tested negative for the deadly flu, spoke with Radio New Zealand this morning.

The unnamed girl - who is currently in quarantine at her home ? told how the group were in homestays for the last few days of their trip to Mexico.

"We were at the school with them and living with them for about three or four days of the trip but we were out and about basically every minute of the day."

"Some of us were getting coughs and stuff within the last few days of our trip," she said.

The student said while she had been suffering a cough and the occasional headache the flu was "not really bothering" her.

The Department of Health had told her she could be in quarantine for up to a week.

"It is pretty surreal. It's sort of movie like, but it's alright. My mum is with me so we'll be all good amusing ourselves."

The situation didn?t really feel real, she said.

"I think that it's pretty freaky... some people might be freaking out about who they've been in contact with and whether their kid has it or not and it's a fair worry."

Rangitoto College principal David Hodge said the positive tests were a shock. "Naturally we are very anxious for the students and staff affected and their families.

"But our fears are tempered by the fact they are getting the best medical care possible. The response from the health authorities has been amazing. From the start, we erred on the side of caution."

Mr Hodge told Radio New Zealand this morning the school was open today after being given the all clear by health authorities.

The 22 students and three teachers affected were being closely monitored, he said.

AIRPORT SURVEILLANCE

Health authorities have instituted a "Code Yellow", with district health boards on alert and airport surveillance beefed up.

Travellers arriving into Auckland Airport from North America this morning were issued with a public health warning.

If the situation deteriorated, the ministry would "ramp up" its response, moving into the code red phase.

This would involve far more intensive work at border entry points, ring-fencing outbreaks within New Zealand, and continuing to treat patients with Tamiflu.

The Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry has also issued a travel notice for people returning from Mexico, California and Texas.

STOP THE SPREAD:

- Stay at home and away from others if you are sick

- Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue and put used tissues in the bin

- Wash and dry hands frequently, even when you start to feel better

* Anyone who has travelled to Mexico or North America in the last fortnight should contact Healthline (0800 611 116) for information. They should seek medical advice if they are displaying flu-like symptoms.

- By ANNA CHALMERS, CLIO FRANCIS and MICHAEL FIELD with NZPA

http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/...5/Passengers-traced-as-global-flu-toll-climbs

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

NZ authorities prepare for worst as swine flu toll rises

7:59PM Monday Apr 27, 2009
NZ Herald staff and agencies

As the death toll in Mexico from swine flu cases climbs to more than 100, New Zealand health authorities are preparing for a pandemic.
Today suspected swine flu cases were being monitored nationwide, including Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Nelson, the West Coast, Canterbury and Otago and some were being treated with Tamiflu as a precaution.


They included 10 people from Auckland's Rangitoto College, who have tested positive for influenza A, from the same family as swine flu, and three more from Northcote College whose were awaiting test results.
Health officials believe it is likely they have swine flu, a deadly new strain of influenza A, which Mexican Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova says has now claimed 103 lives in Mexico.


Samples from the students who tested positive for influenza A are being sent to the World Health Organisation laboratory in Melbourne to ascertain whether it is the subset H1N1 swine influenza. The results should be back in a number of days.

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Prime Minister John Key said that so far only a few people who had travelled to affected areas had shown symptoms, and they had been mild.
"The only thing we have identified so far is a form of influenza," he said.
"Swine flu, which is H1N1, is yet to be confirmed."


Health Minister Tony Ryall said two thirds of the passengers on Air New Zealand flight NZ1 which arrived from Los Angeles with the Rangitoto College passengers on board had been contacted or had presented themselves to health professionals.


The Ministry of Health would soon start contacting passengers on NZ5, the flight which brought the Northcote College students home.
Both groups had been in Mexico.


In brief:
* Swine flu is a subset of the influenza A virus known as H1N1
* The virus has killed 103 people in Mexico and infected over 1600
* Twenty cases have been confirmed in the US, six in Canada
* There are suspected cases in France, New Zealand, Spain, Israel and Brazil
* Northcote and Rangitoto College groups returned from Mexico on Saturday
* Ten Rangitoto students have tested positive for influenza A and the group is being kept in home isolation
* Three Northcote College students and two Waikato residents are also being tested for influenza A
* Passengers arriving in NZ on North American flights are being screened and given information on the flu virus
* The potential influenza epidemic status has been upgraded to yellow
Air New Zealand group general manager international airline Ed Sims said that as a precautionary measure, the 18 crew and two staff travelling for work purposes on NZ1 on Saturday had all been told to stay at home for up to seven days in accordance with ministry guidelines.


The Health Ministry said it was important that people who had travelled to Mexico or North America in the past fortnight should contact Healthline (0800 611 116) for information. They should seek medical advice if they displayed flu-like symptoms.


Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners president Jonathan Fox said today patients with flu-like symptoms should not turn up to GPs' waiting rooms.


"There was immediate risk the virus would spread,' he said.
"When you ring the general practice, tell the receptionist you have flu-like symptoms and want to speak to your GP or the person who is taking such calls.'


Earlier it was revealed the Rangitoto College group at the centre of the swine flu alert thought they might be having a bad reaction to Mexican food.


The Rangitoto school teacher stayed in North Shore Hospital overnight due to the symptoms of the disease, but she was expected to be discharged later today. A student was admitted on Saturday but has since been discharged.


All the infected students and their families have been quarantined at their homes.


The other students and teachers on the trip stayed home today as a precaution, while five students who played soccer with one of the returning students - who had no symptoms - were also sent home today as a precaution.


Click here for the Ministry of Health's influenza pandemic action plan.
Rangitoto College principal David Hodge said most of those believed to have the disease were responding well to doses of the anti-influenza drug, Tamiflu.


"I became aware on Saturday that the kids had arrived home safely but aware that there had been illness on the trip," he told NZPA.
"Originally it was put down to Mexican food, which seemed like a good guess at the time."


The group were Spanish language students having three weeks in Mexico to give them language and cultural experience.


Global spread

Canada today became the third country to confirm human cases of swine flu with public health officials reporting six people falling ill in Nova Scotia and British Columbia.


In the US, health officials said 20 swine flu cases had been reported so far in New York, Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California. There are also suspected cases in France, Israel, Brazil and Spain.


On Saturday, the World Health Organisation activated stage three of its six-stage global influenza plan. Stage three puts nations on "pandemic alert", urging them to intensify surveillance for unusual outbreaks of influenza-like illness and severe pneumonia, but is less serious than the declaration a pandemic is under way.


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10568935&pnum=0

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Updated at 9:16pm on 27 April 2009


Health officials in New Zealand are working to contain a virus outbreak as suspected cases of swine flu are reported in several cities.

The Ministry of Health is still waiting for confirmation on whether a group of students and teachers from Auckland have contracted the new strain of influenza that has killed more than 100 people in Mexico.


Nine students and a teacher from Rangitoto College have tested positive for influenza A and are thought likely to have swine flu after a recent trip to Mexico. Samples were sent to Australia for testing on Monday afternoon.


Two Northcote College students and a parent, who also visited Mexico as part of an 18-strong group, are being tested in New Zealand for influenza A.


The Government has activated its pandemic response plans and wants all passengers who have arrived in New Zealand from Mexico or the United States in the past two weeks to come forward if they have flu-like symptoms.


The outbreak of the human form of swine flu has killed 103 people in Mexico to date. Twenty cases in the US and six in Canada have been reported and there are possible cases in New Zealand, France, Spain and Israel.


The swine flu strain, known as H1N1, is a variant of influenza A. It is the same strain that causes seasonal flu outbreaks in humans, but the newly detected version contains genetic material from versions of flu which usually affect pigs and birds. It is spread mainly through coughs and sneezes.


The Rangitoto College students were travelling on Air New Zealand Flight NZ 1, which arrived at Auckland International Airport at 5am on Saturday.


The Northcote College students were part of a 15-strong party that returned from Mexico on Air New Zealand Flight NZ 5 on Saturday.
Results on the Rangitoto students and teacher may be days away. However, principal David Hodge said on Monday that those affected seem to be responding well to the flu medication, Tamiflu.


The Ministry of Health says the Northcote test results should be known on Tuesday.


Health Minister Tony Ryall told Checkpoint that authorities are contacting passengers on both flights and there are other suspected cases throughout New Zealand.


Nelson-Marlborough District Health Board says it is following up 18 people on the flights and has 20 people in its area in quarantine.


More than a dozen Otago and Southland residents who were passengers on Flight NZ 1 are in voluntary quarantine in their homes - although none have flu symptoms.


West Coast DHB says four West Coast passengers were on Flight NZ 1 and are in quarantine, while Waikato DHB says it is investigating two possible cases of swine flu.


Listen to Checkpoint interview with Health Minister
Incoming flights screened

Health officials are screening large numbers of passengers arriving from North and South America to New Zealand amid concern that swine flu is now spreading globally.


Doctors and nurses met five flights from the Americas which landed at Auckland International Airport from 3am on Monday. About 1000 passengers were screened, with no suspected cases of swine flu picked up.


The Ministry of Health says two passengers reported possible symptoms to air crew or ground staff. Both were screened on arrival and cleared.


Health Director-General Stephen McKernan says New Zealand authorities are in close contact with other countries over the swine flu outbreak in Mexico and elsewhere.

Hospitals prepare

District Health Boards are preparing for the possibility of a pandemic.
In Wellington, anyone presenting with flu-like symptoms will be questioned about their recent travel history and will have swabs taken for testing.


Canterbury District Health Board is activating its community and public health plan for any people who were on Flight NZ 1. It recommends that people concerned about flu-like symptoms phone their GP first.


The Nelson-Marlborough DHB is prepared to activate an emergency operations centre and is confident it has adequate stocks of Tamiflu.
In Otago and Southland, a full emergency response structure is being initiated to make sure staff are aware of pandemic plans and isolation procedures.

Don't spread germs, says GP

The head of the College of General Practitioners is advising anyone who may have the flu to stay home rather than go to their doctor's surgery.


Jonathan Fox says it is better for people who are feeling unwell to stay home and contact their doctor or the Ministry of Health's 24-hour Healthline telephone service.


"There's sources of information that you can access by telephone, rather than taking your germs to your local surgery."


The ministry says extra nurses have been put on the Healthline to cope with a surge in calls. People who have travelled to North and South America in the past fortnight should contact the Healthline, it says.


Flu is characterised by a sudden fever, muscle aches, sore throat and dry cough. Victims of the new strain have also suffered more vomiting and diarrhea than is usual with flu.


The Healthline number is: 0800 611 116.


http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/stories/2009/04/27/1245aac5727b

 

[Legadillo]

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

Re: NZ Suspected Swine Flu Cases April 26+

UPDATE:

Fifty people quarantined

About 50 New Zealanders were reported to be in voluntary isolation in their homes on Monday at the direction of health authorities who suspect they could have been infected with swine flu.

Ten of them are college students confirmed to be infected with the influenza A strain after a study trip to Mexico, where more than 100 people have died from flu.

The others were among more than 300 passengers who travelled with the students on the same Air New Zealand flight from Los Angeles which arrived in Auckland early Saturday.

Health Minister Tony Ryall told a news conference that anyone with flu-like symptoms who had been on two flights that arrived from Los Angeles that day was being treated as likely swine flu victims, though no cases had been confirmed.

Health officials in at least five provinces were monitoring the suspected sufferers who were given Tamniflu antiviral drugs and advised to stay indoors for at least a week to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

Ryall said that two-thirds of the passengers on the plane which carried the 22 Rangitoto College students and three teachers home from a Mexico trip had been contacted by health officials for follow-up checks.

All passengers on a second flight, which carried a group of students from another college who had been to Mexico, were also being traced, he said.
Specialist medical teams met about 1,500 passengers who arrived in Auckland on flights from North and South America Monday and they were told to report to doctors immediately if they developed flu-like symptoms.

Ryall urged anyone who had flu symptoms after visiting Mexico or the United States in the last two weeks to seek medical advice and Prime Minister John Key said travellers "should think very cautiously about visiting Mexico."

Air New Zealand said it had told 20 crew and staff who were on the plane with the Rangitoto College students to stay home for up to seven days in accordance with Ministry of Health guidelines.

http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=988262