Thailand On High Alert For Swine Flu, Ministry calls for cal

High alert for swine flu
Ministry calls for calm, says dangerous strain of virus not found in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- An emergency watch has been ordered for the swine flu outbreak which is now spreading in Mexico and threatening to turn into a pandemic, the Public Health Ministry said yesterday.

In New Zealand, 22 students and three teachers have been quarantined amid fears they may have been infected by swine influenza during a language trip to Mexico, where at least 81 deaths have been blamed on the virus, CNN reported.

Pubic Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai urged people to stay calm, saying the H1N1 viral breed which had caused the disease in Mexico had never been reported here.

However, anyone travelling to the US or Mexico should monitor health advisories issued by both Thai and foreign authorities, he said.

Dr Praj Bunyawongwiroj, the minฌistry's permanent secretary, said he would not recommend people to stop eating pork, but noted that humantohuman transmission was possible through direct contact of body fluids or mucus through sneezing and coughing.

People down with the common flu should stay away from the public and keep themselves in good health until the flu was gone, he said. Read more...