Area officials on lookout for signs of swine flu

Fredericksburg-area officials are on the lookout for evidence of swine flu

FROM STAFF REPORTS

Date published: 4/30/2009

FROM STAFF REPORTS

The Virginia Department of Health will open a call center today so the public can ask swine-flu questions.

The toll-free number is 877/ASK-VDH3.

The center will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The department committed to operating the center through tomorrow to see if people use it.

"There is an increasing interest in this issue on the part of the public," Jeff Lake, deputy commissioner for community health services, said at a briefing yesterday.

As of 1 p.m. yesterday, the state still had no confirmed cases of the virus.

Stafford County Fire Chief Rob Brown wants county residents to remain calm and rational. "There are still so many unanswered questions, but people need to remember that 'pandemic' does not mean the Black Plague, death and destruction," he said. "There are going to be more deaths reported, but that's no different than any other flu season. People need to keep it in perspective."

Brown and his staff are keeping up with swine-flu updates as they come in.

"Essentially, it is the same process we went through two and a half years ago with the avian flu," Brown said. "This has allowed us to dust off and update our existing plan.

"At this point, we're looking at it internally," he said. "We need to be able to protect our workforce. People will depend on us if things get bad."

Fredericksburg's school system sent letters yesterday answering frequently asked questions about the swine flu. James Monroe High School Principal Daryl Chesley said the school nurse is being pro-active.

"She is doubling her efforts to log and track anything that might even remotely display as flu symp- toms," he said.

Spotsylvania County Superintendent Jerry Hill said earlier this week that the school division has "dusted off" its detailed procedures for dealing with a pandemic as a precaution following news reports of swine-flu cases among New York City students.

"At least two to three years worth of planning has gone into planning for a pandemic situation," he said.

Those plans were being reviewed this week in case they need to be put into practice.

The Stafford County school system is working with the Rappahannock Area Health District to educate nurses on the detection, treatment and prevention of swine flu, Superintendent David Sawyer said in a recent letter. He wrote that the system "will take every measure necessary to provide a safe learning environment for all students."

The division will work closely with the health department and inform parents, students and employees of any outbreaks. He said the school system is using cleaning solution to slow viral and bacterial growth.

--Jim Hall, Jeff Branscome, Jonas Beals and Pamela Gould contributed to this report.

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Date published: 4/30/2009