A US tourist arriving in Turkey with the Dutch KLM airlines has been identified as having swine flu. His mother has also been diagnosed as carrying the H1N1 virus. They and other members of the family were taken into quarantine in Haseki hospital in Istanbul on Saturday (16 May).

Hospital employees have been issued with surgical masks to protect them from contagion.

Fellow passengers notified and monitored

Minister of Health Recep Akdağ has announced that the other passengers in the plane have been notified and have been issued preventative treatment medication. They will be monitored. Should they suspect a flu, they are advised to call the 112 emergency services.

The Istanbul province health director Dr. Mehmet Bakar has set up a swine flu crisis desk. He said that they have been unable to contact eight of the passengers on the flight in question, but are working with the US, Canadian and French consulates to reach them.

He added that there was no suspected flu among the other 110 passengers contacted, all of whom are being checked on a daily basis.

72 deaths

According to updated statistics from the World Health Organisation, the H1N1 virus has spread to 39 countries. There are 8,480 cases of swine flu confirmed by laboratories.

In Mexico, 66 people have died of the flu, in the USA 4, in Canada 1, and in Costa Rica 1, adding up to 72 deaths.

39 countries affected

Cases counted by the WHO in other countries are:

Germany (14), Argentina (1), Australia (1), Austria (1), Belgium (4), Britain (82), Brazil (8), China (5), Denmark (1), Equador (1), El Salvador (4), Finland (2), France (14), Guatemala (3), India (1), the Netherlands (3), Ireland (1), Spain (103), Israel (7), Sweden (3), Switzerland (1), Italy (9), Japan (7) , Columbia (11), Korea (3), Cuba (3), Malaysia (2), Norway (2), Panama (54), Peru (1), Poland (1), Portugal (1), Thailand (2), Turkey (1), New Zealand (9). (TK)