Children join list of swine flu victims as North East woman recovers
May 5 2009 by Chris Robinson, The Journal
A WOMAN who is the only confirmed case of swine flu in the North East was last night still continuing her recovery at home.
But nine new cases were confirmed elsewhere in the United kingdom yesterday, taking the total to 27, the Health Protection Agency said.
Seven children were among those diagnosed with the H1N1 virus yesterday.
Five are students at Alleyn’s School, in Dulwich, London, which became the fourth to be closed by the HPA.
The two others are London-based siblings who are close to a previously confirmed case, the HPA said.
Two adults who recently returned from Mexico – to London and the West Midlands – were also diagnosed with swine flu yesterday.
The confirmed case in the North East involves an unnamed woman from Newcastle, who developed mild symptoms shortly after returning from holiday in Cancun, Mexico.
Five students at Newcastle University have been confirmed as having contact with the woman, including two that lived with her who received the anti-viral drug Tamiflu.
Environment Secretary Hilary Benn has urged Britons to stay vigilant despite the outbreak looking less serious than first feared.
He said: “It’s best to play safe in relation to this. We are still not absolutely sure what it is that we are dealing with.
“The truth is we just don’t know.”
He said the outbreak was still “relatively small” and Britain was well prepared.
His worry was that the H1N1 virus could mutate, Mr Benn said, so what might seem like an over-reaction was “the right thing to do”.
And Health Secretary Alan Johnson last night said he expects a second, more serious, wave of cases later this year.
