Our General Store…Pandemic Prep…Flu Update
The CDC has confirmed this morning that 40 people have now been confirmed to have the swine flu in the United States. To this point the only deaths have been in Mexico and it is still a mystery as to why. Six per cent of those who had contracted the flu n Mexico have died. The normal death rate for seasonal flu is less than one percent. At this point only those with a confirmed case are being asked to self quarantine. The flu has now spread to Australia, Denmark, Italy, Columbia and Indiana. The EU has advised Europeans to postpone travel to the United States and Mexico.
With the volatile situation we need to concentrate this week on adding pandemic supplies to our store. If you do not have bleach or other products stored to disinfect surfaces add them. Be sure you have a supply of medications for diarrhea, aches, and fever. Add N95 masks to your store. They may be difficult to find right now buit if you can get at least one box to use if your area should be affected and you need to go out in public.
As far as our food storage portion of our store, this week add 3 bottles of 100% juice per person in your family. Remaining hydrated during an illness is extremely important. Most deaths associated with the flu happen when the patient becomes dehydrated. I have Otter Pops in my store for just this reason. Also remember the BRAT diet for those recovering from the flu: Bananas, rice, applesauce and toast.
We need to keep moving forward in our preparations so we are ready for any emergency not just a pandemic. This has not yet been classified a pandemic and think how serious it is becoming. Imagine a pandemic of the proportions of 1918. We need to keep our goal in mind, a three month supply of the foods we normally eat by the end of this year. We are well on our way and if you have been keeping up you already have a two to three week supply, enough for a short quarantine.
I will be attending a family funeral today but I will try to post when I can to keep you up to date. Please don’t be panicked but please continue to prepare and PLEASE ask your children’s school TODAY about their preparations should the schools close for a week or more.
This is a great article which answers many questions in simple to understand language.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aWcd0Nbgc_R4&refer=home
This is a map I discovered which tracks the flu. I’m not sure how often it is updated but it is worth a look.
April 27, 10:45 am PDT
Several news conferences have just ended and there really isn’t much new information. The CDC did make the statement that people need to be preparing and thinking about how they would work from home, what they will do for child care if schools close and how they can prepare to stay at home and have the things they will need. Hmmm…we are ahead of the game. We have discussed all of those things in the last few weeks in our Pandemic prep posts.
The big news this hour is the earthquake in Mexico city…really. How awful to have that on top of a flu emergency. We have also discussed that, how would we handle an earthquake, flood, hurricane, tornado or a power outage on top of a quarantine? If this turns out to be a warning of things that could come we need to really focus on being prepared, no matter what.
Several schools have already been closed in NYC, Sacramento and Texas. All schools in Mexico have been closed.
Good source for keeping track of outbreaks:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10227976-2.html
NYC press conference:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jDrS0zyM9U2lh372d7r1FMjLVHrAD97QURG81
April 27 8:00pm PDT
The Director-General has raised the level of influenza pandemic alert from the current phase 3 to phase 4.
The change to a higher phase of pandemic alert indicates that the likelihood of a pandemic has increased, but not that a pandemic is inevitable.
As further information becomes available, WHO may decide to either revert to phase 3 or raise the level of alert to another phase.
This decision was based primarily on epidemiological data demonstrating human-to-human transmission and the ability of the virus to cause community-level outbreaks.
Given the widespread presence of the virus, the Director-General considered that containment of the outbreak is not feasible. The current focus should be on mitigation measures.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2009/h1n1_20090427/en/index.html
The United States advised Americans against most travel to Mexico and ordered stepped up border checks in neighboring states. The European Union health commissioner advised Europeans to avoid nonessential travel both to Mexico and parts of the United States.
The virus poses a potentially grave new threat to the U.S. economy, which was showing tentative early signs of a recovery. A widespread outbreak could batter tourism, food and transportation industries, deepening the recession in the U.S. and possibly worldwide.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gzz357patY4-QaJFvo9O95zMM_EQD97R59C80
South Korean officials have found a suspected case of swine flu in a woman who recently returned from Mexico.
Health authorities are carrying out clinical tests on the woman, officials and news reports said.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8021915.stm
The government will conduct quarantine activities on flights from Canada and the United States at three of Japan’s key international airports as well as on flights from Mexico, having quarantine officers check passengers in the cabin before disembarking the aircraft.
Should people be suspected of infection with swine flu in Japan, the government will isolate them at designated medical facilities to prevent the disease from spreading.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-04/28/content_11270585.htm
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Thank you for keeping all of us informed. I check your blog several times a day. Also, added more juice and Tylenol to my supply yesterday. Thank you!
Thanks for the wonderful website and blog, helping us all get prepared. I do have a comment about the BRAT diet for gastroenteritis. While these foods can be soothing, it isn’t now felt to be necessary to restrict the diet to them. If vomiting is under control an individual can eat nearly anything that is appealing. I would avoid fried or highly spiced foods that are harder to digest.
Janice Woolley MD