March 17, 2003

Don't worry. The CDC and the UK health authorities are both playing down comparisons between SARS and the 1918 Spanish Flu. The reassurances aren't robust: the disease has spread over three continents in less than a week, it's more lethal than Spanish Flu, and they're already sanitizing airplanes. Don't worry.

SARS Spreads

It's being called Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, and it's spreading. The Beeb has provided a map of confirmed infections. They've also provided a handy FAQ. It's being transmitted by air travel, of course. The experts interviewed are not very concerned. Pay attention to how many new cases have been found since we last mentioned this, and keep in mind that there's a two-day incubation period before symptoms arrive. According to this CDC press call, cases may have appeared in Georgia and New York. At the time of this writing, Reuters is reporting Britain's first case.

OnePeople is also delighted to see that the BBC has also picked up on the Spanish Flu meme, advanced in these pages, and also by New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark. The Beeb jauntily claims that it's not as bad as the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918, since it isn't a flu, and hasn't yet killed 40 million. A cold comfort.

For the real alarmists: everyone has issued travel warnings, and they're sanitizing airplanes. Says one expert: "There's no much you can do to avoid this, unless you go and live as a hermit."


-- posted by Gunnar at March 17, 2003 08:32 AM - TrackBack
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