Mexico hit by revised 5.6-magnitude earthquake

 2009-04-28 01:20:06  

    MEXICO CITY, April 27 (Xinhua) --

An earthquake registering 5.6 magnitude on the Richter scale hit southern Mexico on Monday at 11:46 a.m. local time (1746 GMT), with an epicenter 23 kilometers northeast of Zumpango, a small town in the state of Guerrero, and with a deepness of 41.2 kilometers, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earthquake Hazards Program reported.

    The quake was felt in Mexico City and the main cities of Guerrero to the south of the national capital.

    Mexico City officials reported damage to two buildings in the city. Four other buildings are showing signs of cracks, which are under investigation. The city government is monitoring airports and public transport facilities across 16 boroughs, but has not seen signs of damage there.

    No one has been reported hurt at present.

    The USGS had earlier reported the quake as having a 6 magnitude.  

Editor: Mu Xuequan

WHO raises swine flu alert to level four

2009-04-28 05:37:39

·The WHO on Monday raised its pandemic alert level from Phase 3 to Phase 4. ·A raise to Phase 4 means the virus can cause "community-level outbreaks." ·WHO Director-general said efforts should be focused on mitigation.

    GENEVA, April 27 (Xinhua) --

Amid the rapid spread of swine flu in some countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday raised its pandemic alert level from Phase 3 to Phase 4, warning of a significant increase in the risk of a pandemic.

    Following the advice and guidance of an emergency committee, WHO Director-general Margaret Chan decided to raise the alert level from the current Phase 3 to Phase 4, a WHO official told the media on a teleconference.

    A raise to Phase 4 means the swine flu virus can cause sustained human-to-human transmission and "community-level outbreaks," indicating a significant increase in the pandemic risk, according to the WHO's six-phase alert system for a possible pandemic.

    But raising the alert level does not necessarily mean a pandemic is considered inevitable, Keiji Fukuda, the WHO's temporary assistant director-general for Health Security and the Environment told reporters via a web press conference.

    The new virus strain, a subtype of A/H1N1, has not been detected in swine or humans before. With little or no resistance from the human immune system, the strain has the ability to aggressively attack the body and become deadly.

    WHO Director-general Margaret Chan has said containment is not feasible at this time and instead efforts should be focused on mitigation.

    "Either closing borders or restricting trade would have very little effect of stopping the movement of the influenza strain but it would cause a great deal of disruption for countries," said Fukuda.

    However, Fukuda urged people experiencing flu-like symptoms to delay travel and seek immediate medical attention.

    In its third and last recommendation, the WHO chief considered that production of seasonal influenza vaccine should continue at this time, subject to re-evaluation as the situation evolves. As there are a number of parties involved, the WHO will facilitate the process needed to develop a vaccine effective against the A/H1N1 virus.

    In Mexico, there have been 1,614 suspected cases of swine flu, including as many as 149 deaths. UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon on Monday noted that the deaths in Mexico were of particular concern because those who died were "young and healthy adults."

    On Monday, the WHO said there were 40 confirmed cases of the swine flu across several states in the U.S. -- California 7 cases, Kansas 2 cases, New York 28 cases, Ohio 1 case, and Texas 2 cases. No deaths have been reported.

    Suspected or confirmed cases of swine flu were also reported in Scotland, Canada, New Zealand, Israel, France, Spain and Brazil.

    According to a Monday statement from Margaret Chan, the WHO chief, "The decision (to raise the alert level) was based primarily on epidemiological data demonstrating human-to-human transmission and the ability of the virus to cause community-level outbreaks."

    As further information becomes available, the WHO may decide to either revert to phase 3 or raise the level of alert to another phase, she said.

    A raise to Phase 5 would indicate that a pandemic is imminent.    

U.S. swine flu cases rise to 40, drug stockpile released

 2009-04-28 03:41:25  

    WASHINGTON, April 27 (Xinhua) --

U.S. health officials said Monday that there are now up to 40 cases of swine flu in five U.S. States and they had released 25 percent of a federal drugs stockpile to states fighting swine flu.

    Briefing reporters at a news conference in Atlanta on Monday, Richard Besser, acting director of the CDC, said 20 new cases were confirmed due entirely to further testing in New York at a school in Queens, bringing the New York total to 28.

    Besser said other cases have been reported in Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California. He said that, of the 40 cases, only one person has been hospitalized and all have recovered.

    The best way to keep the disease from spreading, he said, is by taking everyday precautions such as frequent handwashing, covering up coughs and sneezes and staying away from work or school if not feeling well.

    The drug stockpile released amount to "11 million courses of antiviral drugs," he told reporters.

    "These are en route to affected states of California, New York and Texas as well as other states around the country," Besser said, adding that US states are also receiving CDC test kits to diagnose swine flu.

    Besser also said that federal government is readying a travel advisory instructing Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico. 　

Editor: Mu Xuequan

Swine flu has become "most serious concerns" of international community, UN chief says

2009-04-28 01:37:12  

    UNITED NATIONS, April 27 (Xinhua) --

The unique strain of swine influenza suspected of killing nearly 150 people in Mexico and spreading rapidly to other countries is of "the most serious concern" to the international community, including the United Nations, UN Secretary-General Ban-Ki moon told reporters here on Monday.

    "We are concerned that this virus could cause a new influenza pandemic," he said in a statement read to the press here. "It could be mild, in its effects, or potentially severe."

    The new strain, a subtype of A/H1N1, has not been previously detected in swine or humans before. With little or no resistance from the human immune system, the strain has the ability to aggressively attack the body and become deadly.

    Ban said he had been in contact with World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Margaret Chan who recently activated the Strategic Operations Center which includes convening the Emergency Committee.

    The Committee will be meeting this afternoon in Geneva to discuss whether to raise the pandemic alert from level 3 to level 4 or 5, which would signal that the animal virus is increasingly becoming adept at spreading between humans.

    Ban said that the international community needed to "demonstrate global solidarity" as "no nation can deal with threat of such dimension on its own."

    After already being hit hard by other crises this year, such as food, energy, climate change and financial, "poorer nations are especially vulnerable," said Ban. "The World Bank and other UN development and humanitarian agencies will therefore mobilize to ensure that countries needing additional financial resources to combat an epidemic will have them."

    In Mexico, there have been 1,614 suspected cases of swine flu, including as many as 149 deaths. Ban noted that the deaths in Mexico were of particular concern because those who died were "young and healthy adults."

    On Monday, the WHO said there were 40 confirmed cases of the swine flu across several states in the U.S. -- California 7 cases, Kansas 2 cases, New York City 28 cases, Ohio 1 case, and Texas 2 cases. No deaths have been reported.

    U.S. President Barack Obama said Monday the threat of spreading swine flue infections was cause for concern but "not a cause for alarm," as the U.S. stepped up border monitoring.

    Suspected or confirmed cases of swine flu were also reported in Canada, New Zealand, Israel, France and Brazil.

    On Monday, the European Commission said it wants EU health ministers to convene as soon as possible to look at the dangers of the disease spreading to Europe. The details of such a meeting have to be worked out by the Czech Republic, which holds the EU presidency.

    People usually get swine influenza from infected pigs, however, human-to-human transmission has occurred in some instances. While health authorities have said it is safe to eat pork products cooked at temperatures of 70 Celsius, China, Russia and Ukraine banned imports of pork and pork products from Mexico and three U.S. states which reported outbreaks.

    There are no vaccines that contain the current swine influenza virus causing illness in humans; however, the viruses so far characterized have been sensitive to prescription antiviral drugs oseltamivir and zanamivir, but resistant to both amantadine and rimantadine. 

Editor: Mu Xuequan

South Korea reports suspected human infection of swine flu

2009-04-28 07:20:29

    SEOUL, April 28 (Xinhua) --

South Korean official said the government confirms a suspected case of human infection of swine influenza in the country, the South Korean government said Tuesday.

    A 51-year-old South Korean woman who recently returned from a trip to Mexico has been classified as a possible swine flu patient, director of Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC)Lee Jong-koo said at a press conference.

    It was the first case of suspected human infection of swine influenza in the country.

    "Three people from a trip to Mexico were first suspected of possible infection, but two showed negative results on the test while one of them is still going through a further examination," Lee said.

    Lee also said that the KCDC will report the result of the examination in the morning of Wednesday.

    The South Korean government on Monday designated swine flu as an infectious livestock disease and allowed authorities to limit movement. It also ordered to destroy and bury the sick animals, and compensate farmers if the outbreak of swine influenza is discovered in the country.

    The agriculture and forestry ministry said Monday that the government and the Korea Swine Association are cooperatively setting up new standard operating procedures to check for possible infections of the H1N1 virus, and devising actions to be taken if a sick animal is discovered.

    The South Korean government announced last Saturday to tighten quarantine measures for pork from the United States and Mexico after outbreaks of swine influenza in these countries were confirmed by the World Health Organization.

    The government on Monday began to conduct inspections of the belongings of tourists who have traveled back from the U.S. and Mexico.

    The World Health Organization confirmed on Saturday that dozens of people had been diagnosed with swine influenza in Mexico and the United States.

    According to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, South Korea imported 28,726 tons of pork from the United States and 208 tons of pork from Mexico into the first quarter of this year.

Editor: Xiong Tong

China's Health Ministry on high alert for swine flu

2009-04-28 00:31:12  

    BEIJING, April 27 (Xinhua) --

China's Ministry of Health (MOH) is developing a diagnostic reagent for use in testing for swine flu, which has killed more than 100 people in Mexico, an MOH spokesman said Monday.

    Research on a possible vaccine and medication to combat the deadly virus was also underway, MOH spokesman Mao Qun'an told Xinhua.

    The MOH had ordered medical institutions at all levels to step up monitoring of suspected swine flu cases, and to report them to the ministry promptly, said Mao.

    Local authorities were required to immediately organize experts to provide medical consultations and treatment at designated medical institutions if people were suspected to have contracted the virus.

    Swine influenza A/H1N1 is a respiratory disease that infects pigs and does not normally infect humans. But sporadic cases do occur, usually for people who have had close contact with pigs.

    At least 103 people had died out of about 1,600 suspected cases in Mexico by Monday noon. A total of 49 cases were reported in the United States, Canada, and other countries.

    As of Monday morning, no cases had been reported in China.

    However, the Hong Kong Center for Health Protection said Monday that a Hong Kong woman who developed symptoms of respiratory infection and fever while traveling in the United States was being tested for swine flu.

    Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang had called a special meeting to study countermeasures to the virus.

    Mao said the MOH would enhance contact with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the governments of Mexico and the U.S. to learn about the latest developments.

    "China is willing to provide technical support for countries plagued by swine flu," he said.

    Though it has no vaccine, the MOH insisted that the swine flu was "preventable, controllable, and treatable."

    On Saturday, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine issued an emergency notice requiring people to report flu-like symptoms at the point of entry when coming from the swine flu affected places.

    People who developed flu-like symptoms after returning from affected regions within two weeks should also report to local entry-exit inspection and quarantine authorities.

    These people reporting flu-like symptoms must be examined and those who have been infected or are suspected to be infected by the virus should be isolated and treated, the administration said.