When contagion strikes, it's Honolulu you should avoid

The Guardian.  Excerpts:

When the next outbreak of Sars or Swine flu hits, New York's John F Kennedy airport and Los Angeles's airports will likely be the key spreaders of disease, according to a new study. But while the influence of these super-hubs may not come as much of a surprise, the third most outbreak-friendly airport in the states is far smaller, and far less obvious – Honolulu International.



In a paper published Monday in the journal PLoS One, a team of researchers from MIT outlined a new computer model that predicts how the 40 largest American airports may contribute to the diffusion of contagious disease within the first few days of a potential epidemic.


They looked at which hubs may be key "early spreaders" because knowing where epidemics may begin is key to stemming an outbreak, Marta Gonzalez, professor in the department of civil and environmental engineering at MIT, and one of the contributors to the new model, told the Guardian.
..
Honolulu airport "combines three important features that catalyze contagion spreading", the study reports. Its geographical positioning in the middle of the Pacific Ocean makes it a prime layover between the US west coast and large Asian hubs; it's also "well connected" to other powerful spreader airports, such as LAX; and it sees a high volume of long-range travel; all of which would help to spread a disease outbreak.

 
First rule of thumb:  In an Outbreak Scenario; Never fly.  If you do have to fly, don't lick anything.  If you must lick something, kill the bacteria with any available alcohol.  If there's no alcohol, Panic Sex will suffice.  Remember:  Safety first, babies..

1 million chickens culled in outbreak of H7N3 bird flu in Mexico

Another variant of bird flu rears its head in Mexico..  Again.  Huh.  The Extinction Protocol:

July 6, 2012 – MEXICO - An outbreak of the H7N3 bird flu virus in western Mexico has infected about 2.5 million chickens and led authorities to destroy or dispose of almost a million birds. The country’s Agriculture Department said 129 farms in the western state of Jalisco have been inspected. Flu was confirmed in birds at 24 of the sites and tests continued on most of the rest. The farms in question have been placed under quarantine, the department said in a statement. The outbreak has caused increases in the price of chicken and egg products in Mexico. –AP



Concern mounts crisis could spread: Poultry farmers in Belize, especially in border areas near Mexico, are being asked to step up their bio-security measures as the Belize Agricultural Health Authority has placed a national poultry health alert following Mexico officially reporting a major outbreak of highly pathogenic H7N3 Avian Influenza (“Bird Flu”). The outbreak has hit three commercial poultry layer farms in the central Mexican state of Jalisco and Belizean authorities have announced that precautionary measures are being taken and border controls along the Belize/Mexico border are being strengthened. However, in a bid not to create panic and drive down sales, authorities are sending the message that poultry products are safe for human consumption. “The disease rarely affects humans and requires direct contact with sick birds. In humans, the disease causes conjunctivitis and mild flu symptoms. The outbreak in Mexico started on June 13, 2012. In total, over one million birds are believed to be susceptible across the three farms and over 200,000 have already died from the outbreak. A further 60,000 have been destroyed. The sick birds showed signs of weakness, poor alertness, difficulty in breathing, were lying on their side and had drooping wings prior to death,” stated officials. Other countries in the region, Guatemala in particular, have also called national alerts and are strengthening their surveillance and diagnostic programs for Avian Influenza. Control measures being applied in Mexico include: movement controls on poultry and poultry products; official sampling in commercial poultry farms, backyard poultry farms, and poultry markets; assessment of biosecurity and good livestock practices; and depopulation of affected farms. This outbreak in Mexico is considered a threat to Belize and the region due to a previous major outbreak in Mexico (in the period 1993 – 1996) where the disease became endemic and also spilled over into Guatemala and El Salvador. –Caribbean 360

29 reported dead in Swine Flu outbreak in Mexico

From The Extinction Protocol.  Excerpts:

An ongoing swine flu outbreak in Mexico has left at least 29 people dead and nearly 1,500 others infected, health officials confirmed on Saturday. Thousands more are also ill as the country faces several types of flu this season. Since the start of the ongoing winter season, at least 7,069 people have reported suffering from symptoms similar to those of swine flu. Lab tests are still underway and have so far confirmed 1,456 cases of the disease, which is officially known as A/H1N1. According to Mexico’s Health Ministry (SSA), at least twenty-nine people have died of swine flu so far this season. While no health emergency has been declared, officials expect the death toll will rise in the coming weeks as Mexico also faces A/H3N2 and B influenza.

Lest we forget that Bird Flu has also reared its ugly head again..  We should be OK, though, as long as no Mexicans visit China, Egypt, Vietnam, or Indonesia..  Let's all do our part to keep potential pandemics isolated, and neutered!