2 Spencer children test clean for Swine Flu

By Jonathan Cook
Turley Publications Reporter

SPENCER – As the speed of global information struggles to catch up with the speed of a global contagion, reports of two students in Spencer being tested for Mexican swine flu have been confirmed.
According to published reports after press time Wednesday evening, the two children did not test positive for Swine Flu.
When Spencer/East Brookfield Superintendent Ralph Hicks was reached by telephone Wednesday morning, he was asked if it is true that a pair of students from the Lake Street School became ill after returning from a trip to Mexico and are now being tested for swine flu. Hicks indicated those are the facts. “You can confirm what every other reporter has confirmed. I’ve had more reporters and cameras pointed at me,” he said.
Does he think the attention is overblown?
“I think we’re taking precautions,” he answered. “We don’t know if they have the swine flu. We’re being proactive.”
In public health agencies, the emphasis is on active. According to the Center for Disease Control’s Web site (cdc.gov), the federal agency “has activated its emergency operations center to coordinate the agency’s emergency response.” One of the actions taken by the operations center is a “travel warning” against any non-essential trips to Mexico. Going further than that, the Center released “one quarter” of the national stockpile of “anti-viral drugs, personal protective equipment, and respiratory protective devises to help states respond to the outbreak.”
That response has been accelerated in pursuit of a virus that has now taken its first life on American soil. According to CNN, a child in Texas is the first known fatality due to the flu outbreak. In Mexico at this point, there have been fewer than 10. But worldwide, more than 100 cases have been confirmed at a time of year that normally sees very little in the way of the flu bug.
According to international reports, the swine flu, named so because of its swine flu genetic component, also bears characteristics of the bird flu as well a human strain of flu. It has also been confirmed by officials that this new worrisome flu does pass from human to human.
“This is a rapidly evolving situation,” according to the CDC web site, but, as of mid-day Wednesday the Center listed a total of 64 cases in the United States. New York city has by far the most with 45.
It may take a few extra days for it to be known if Spencer is to be added to the list. According to Hicks, the CDC lab is “backed up.” He was originally expecting test results by Friday, but now it seems highly doubtful that will happen.
Meanwhile, the school remains open after all places suspected of possible contamination have been disinfected, including classrooms and the bus, according to reports.
According to Hicks, “We’re doing everything we can to keep things safe.”