RI imposes travel warning as swine flu alert reaches phase 5
In just two days after the Health Minister played down the potential of swine flu (H1N1) pandemic, the Office of the Coordinating Minister for Peoples Welfare announced that the danger of a pandemic is imminent as it reached phase five.
At 02.30 a.m , we received an announcement from the World Health Organization (WHO) that the pandemic alert level had reached phase five. In other words, the signal for a pandemic is strong and imminent, Bayu Krisna Murthi, chairman of the National Avian Influenza Committee (Komnas FBPI), said in the office on Thursday.
The committee is now handling the swine flu outbreak.
WHO Director General Dr. Margaret Chan, raised the current level of influenza pandemic alert from phase four to phase five based on assessment of all available information and following several experts consultations.
Following the WHO announcement, Bayu said that The Foreign Affairs Ministry had issued a travel warning to Mexico , the epicenter of the swine flu, and travel advisory to eight other countries that have confirmed human cases. The countries are: USA , Canada , New Zealand , United Kingdom , Israel , Spain , Austria , and Germany .
The Foreign Affairs Ministry is imposing the travel warning and advisory based on WHOs advice, he said.
There are six phases of WHO pandemic alert. Phase five means that pandemic is imminent as flu spreads to and causes sustained community outbreaks in at least two countries. Phase six means sustained outbreaks in at least two WHO regions.
He said that if the outbreak escalated to phase six, Indonesia might impose a travel ban to Mexico or other infected countries. Peru , Ecuador , Argentina , and Cuba have imposed travel ban to Mexico .
According to Reuters AlertNet, as of Wednesday, the death toll in Mexico reached 159 people 49 confirmed to be infected, while WHO data showed that seven people die out of 26 confirmed. The flu had reached its first victim in USA , a 23 months old toddler.
According to data from the Foreign Affairs Ministry, as of Thursday, there were no Indonesians outside the country had been infected or died from the swine flu. There are 309 Indonesians in Mexico and 50,371 in USA .
Bayu said that the office had increased surveillance and border control at airports, seaports, and land borders, especially in international airports: Soekarno-Hatta in Jakarta , Hang Nadim in Batam and Ngurah Rai in Bali. (fmb)
Source: The Jakarta Post
comments
Leave a Reply
-
Office hour : 08.00 - 16.00
Monday - Saturday
