World still on alert

Mexico sees flu ‘stabilization’

MEXICO: Mexico said its H1N1 flu outbreak appeared to be “in a stabilization phase” Saturday, as it tried to mitigate the economic cost of the crisis, joining Canada and the United States in hitting out at pork boycotts.

Mexico said the national death toll from the epidemic reached 19, as health officials around the world remained on high alert as more cases were confirmed in Asia, Europe and the Americas.

“I believe we have enough elements to say that we are in a stabilization phase,” said Mexican Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova, who confirmed that the tally of cases, including those who have died, had risen to 473. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported at least 615 cases in around 15 countries.

In Geneva, a WHO official indicated the virus had not spread in a sustained way outside of the Americas, a condition necessary to declare a full global pandemic.

“We see no evidence of sustained community spread outside North America,” said Mike Ryan, WHO Director of Global Alert and Response.

In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 160 confirmed cases spread across 21 states and said additional cases and perhaps even deaths could follow.

Authorities in New York said the city may have seen more than 1,000 cases, but carriers were likely recovering or recovered.

In Canada, some 30 new cases were reported on Saturday, bringing the total number of people infected throughout the country to over 85.

Officials also confirmed H1N1 cases had been detected in a pig herd in Alberta, likely contracted from a man who recently returned from Mexico.

The three North American nations tried to mitigate the economic impact of the crisis, hitting out at countries which had slapped bans on their pork products.

Mexico City, Sunday, AFP