What's Next?

So what happens next?  According to a Bloomberg Report dated March 8, 2005, the Bird Flu is likely to hit the United States sometime this spring.  Health official David Nabarro reported that as wild birds migrate to Alaska, they will carry the H5N1 virus with them.  He also is the first "top global health official" to publicly state that he believes there will "be a pandemic sooner or later."  The prediction for the number of deaths we would suffer in South Dakota is 5000, with over 230,000 state residents becoming ill with the flu.  This information is taken from the Sioux Falls Argus Leader newspaper, dated March 8, 2006.

The good news is that health officials have announced that a vaccine has been developed that is successful in preventing H5N1.  The problem is, it can't be offered to the public until more testing is done.  It also depends on the availability of lots of chicken eggs because that's where it is developed.  Also, there is no organization for getting the virus to people all over the world in a fast way.

Discovery of the

 Bird Flu

The Pandemic of 1918

How Fast Does the Bird Flu Virus Spread?

Prior to October 2005

The Bird Flu IS Spreading