Alert - Mexico Respiratory Illness * Swine Flu Discussion *

[TiaMaria]

I still don't understand the concern many of you are expressing about going to Mexico. There are now as many (or almost as many) confirmed cases in the US.

This flu is SLIGHTLY worse then regular flu. so you should be SLIGHTLY more concerned than you would be if you were traveling during the height of the regular flu season.

Some of you seem to be WAY more concerned. why?

Quite honestly I think the media was bored and once they got a whiff of a story that had some sensational possibilities - they ran with it. Unfortunately for people who only read headlines or listen to sound bites - it has had terrifying repercussions.

I am with the posters who have used the mantra "Educate yourselves". Once I read the CNN story that reiterated that 13,000 US citizens have perished from REGULAR SEASONAL FLU since January of this year - it really put it into perspective. Of couse we should be concerned, as with any other outbreak, but not scared or even alarmed unless we or a family member already has a compromised immune system. If that's the case, seek guidance from your doctor. Overreacting does not help.

We are still planning our Cancun trip next week. Of course we will be taking a few more precautions than normal - however we are not resorting to face masks! We just plan to be diligent about hand washing, hand shaking, etc.

I'll let you all know how it goes.

 

[erinlees_mommie]

Quite honestly I think the media was bored and once they got a whiff of a story that had some sensational possibilities - they ran with it. Unfortunately for people who only read headlines or listen to sound bites - it has had terrifying repercussions.

I am with the posters who have used the mantra "Educate yourselves". Once I read the CNN story that reiterated that 13,000 US citizens have perished from REGULAR SEASONAL FLU since January of this year - it really put it into perspective. Of couse we should be concerned, as with any other outbreak, but not scared or even alarmed unless we or a family member already has a compromised immune system. If that's the case, seek guidance from your doctor. Overreacting does not help.

We are still planning our Cancun trip next week. Of course we will be taking a few more precautions than normal - however we are not resorting to face masks! We just plan to be diligent about hand washing, hand shaking, etc.

I'll let you all know how it goes.

Have fun!! I hope that you have a great time and come home to tell all of us what a wonderful healthy trip you had!! Maybe it will calm some nerves here.
I am looking forward to going to Cozumel.I will be sad if we don't make it there.But also I won't be Sulking Sally because we didn't get to go because of health risks.I'll just be happy to take our first ever cruise with DH and DD!

Enjoy !!

 

[TiaMaria]

Have fun!! I hope that you have a great time and come home to tell all of us what a wonderful healthy trip you had!! Maybe it will calm some nerves here.
I am looking forward to going to Cozumel.I will be sad if we don't make it there.But also I won't be Sulking Sally because we didn't get to go because of health risks.I'll just be happy to take our first ever cruise with DH and DD!

Enjoy !!

Thanks! Hopefuly by the time you sail next month (and we sail in July) this will be under control and you can get to Cozumel.

I expect even by our Eastern in July that the buffets, beverage station and the ice cream station will be manned by CM's instead of self-serve - and that's OK with me. Hey anytime we can all educate kids (and even some adults) on better sanitation habits - it's a win-win.

 

[wwwosie]

We are still planning our Cancun trip next week. Of course we will be taking a few more precautions than normal - however we are not resorting to face masks! We just plan to be diligent about hand washing, hand shaking, etc.

I'll let you all know how it goes.

Hey Tia Maria!
Depending on when you are going next week, you might still find a lot of businesses closed in Cancun. I listen to the news from Mexico all the time and they were going to reevaluate the situation on May 6, which is the day the kiddos are supposed to return to school.
The reason most of the tourist areas closed was because all of a sudden they had a whole bunch of people from Mexico City with a week with nothing to do (talking about college students mainly...) so it was decided that they didn't want people bringing the "bug" with them.

But I am with you... if I were going I would use a face mask, just handwash, no kissing or handshaking, "vampire cough"... handwash, handwash, handwash...

Have fun!

 

[Im_A_Princess]

OK that's it.

After I get on the ship, I'm going to demand that they don't go back to the US until this is all cleared up. They are just going to have to sail around the oceans until this all blows over.

Or port anywhere else for that matter!
SOUNDS GOOD!

 

[loveysbydesign]

Got an email about updated info. for prople who get it while onboard a cruise ship
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance/cruiseships.htm

 

[wideeyedwonder]

We shall see where this goes...I'd bet that cruises a month or two out MAY return to normal itineraries...we shall see... :

---
U.S. Officials Downplay Flu's Severity
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124136305467380799.html

"...U.S. officials said the H1N1 flu so far doesn't seem to be more dangerous than the seasonal flu, and that healthy Americans don't need to stay away from airports, trains or shopping malls.

"We are seeing encouraging signs that this virus so far is not looking more severe than a strain that we would see during seasonal flu," said Richard Besser, acting chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention..."

"...Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said on the same show that healthy people don't need to wear masks or avoid the mall. In fact, she said, Mr. Biden rode the train home last week..."
---

 

[tvguy]

Seeing more interviews today of cruise passengers returning from cruises that skipped Mexican ports. Very interesting that most of the folks who were actually on cruises the past week are livid that Mexican ports were skipped, but at least from this board, it appears most people about to go on cruises want to skip the ports.

 

[erinlees_mommie]

http://flutracker.rhizalabs.com/

I don't know if I skipped a post with this in it .. or maybe it hasn't been posted yet.I have tried reading all of these as they come to my mailbox but sometimes that isn't always a great way to keep up with the Dis...
If it has been posted sorry Just worth repeating I guess

 

[tjbaggott]

I just saw a brief news update during a commercial break from a show I'm watching. Canada now has it's Very First "Serious" Case of this flu, in a young girl. Details at 11pm. I assume this means Not a mild case, not like the cases seen thus far outside of Mexico (other than the little tyke in Texas).
I'll be watching that for certain.

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

Seeing more interviews today of cruise passengers returning from cruises that skipped Mexican ports. Very interesting that most of the folks who were actually on cruises the past week are livid that Mexican ports were skipped, but at least from this board, it appears most people about to go on cruises want to skip the ports.

Certainly not us! From what I'm seeing this is not as serious/deadly as they first thought and besides it's every where here anyway! We're in Texas- we've had 4 confirmed cases IN MY SMALL TOWN. So Have they even had any cases in Cozumel? If not, I rest my case. That might be the safest place to go anyway. LOL

 

[Fawn]

Certainly not us! From what I'm seeing this is not as serious/deadly as they first thought and besides it's every where here anyway! We're in Texas- we've had 4 confirmed cases IN MY SMALL TOWN. So Have they even had any cases in Cozumel? If not, I rest my case. That might be the safest place to go anyway. LOL

HERE HERE!! I'm off to Cozumel to wait out this new flu season! Best idea I've heard today!!!

 

[tjbaggott]

Oh, also coming up on the 11pm news.... Some country has quarantined Some Canadian School children, Not because they have this flu, but because they ARE FROM CANADA! That I feel is Ridiculous!

And just found this at a NEWS site:


UPDATE: Canada Has 140 Confirmed H1N1 Cases, 1 Severe



(Updates throughout with more details.)

OTTAWA -(Dow Jones)- Canada's H1N1 or swine flu tally rose to 140 Monday, including the first severe case in the country.

A young girl is in intensive care in Edmonton with the flu, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said at a daily briefing. The child has no direct link to Mexico, the epicenter of the outbreak.

Chief Public Health Officer David Butler-Jones said news of the severe case was "disconcerting" but "not surprising". All the other cases were relatively mild and the infected recovered fully.

"As we've been saying, our heightened surveillance will uncover more and more cases, with varying levels of severity," Butler-Jones said.

He said even if the World Health Organization raises its pandemic alert phase to 6 from the current 5, it would not mean the virus has become more severe or dangerous.

 

[NancyIL]

HOLY COW! While I totally sympathize with being bummed out about missing Cozumel (which I want to go to some day!)... everyone should be SO GLAD they aren't on a 7 day Mexican Riviera cruise on Celebrity or RCCL right about now. Those cruises seem to have, um, become a trip to San Diego and floating around the Pacific coast for 6 days...

I haven't much interest in a Mexican Riviera cruise, but would love to do a Pacific Coastal cruise on Mariner of the Seas. It's also dirt cheap right now! (I do understand why the people sailing on that ship are upset about the big itinerary change.) The Mariner will sail roundtrip from LA with stops in San Francisco, Seattle, and Victoria, BC - at least through mid-June.