Phase 6 Now

On Thursday, June 11, 2009, The World Health Organization has issued a new warning, raising the level of influenza pandemic alert from phase 5 to 6, indicating that the situation has become very serious and a global pandemic is underway. It also indicated that the H1N1 virus has caused sustained community level outbreaks in two or more countries.

This was the second time which the World Health Organization issued the global flu epidemic almost 40 years ago since the Hong Kong flu in 1968, infecting an estimated 500,000 Hong Kong residents, killing an estimated one million people worldwide.

When it was no longer to contain the virus in one territory, further spread was inevitable. As of June 12, 2009, it was reported that nearly 30,000 influenza A (H1NI) cases have been confirmed in 74 countries with 145 deaths.

Currently, Australia is another country where the H1N1 virus has hit it real hard, totaling of 1,300 confirmed cases so far, including several top sports stars.

However, Dr. Margaret Chan, Director of the WHO urged people to remain calm and said that the raise of the alert to Phase 6 did not imply that we would see increase in number of deaths or very severe cases.