Rhiza Labs FluTracker Forum

Here is a link to http://www.wunderground.com for Tropical Cyclone Yasi nearing Queensland, Australia.

Yasi:
http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMa ... rynum=1739

Wish it weren't so!

Has anyone heard from cpg? It seemed there was at least one post after the floodwaters reached Brisbane, but nothing after. Hope he is okay, and avoids this next storm.

Yasi upgraded to category 5 - http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/ ... 6S20110202

Yes, Tex, there's concern for all our folks from Australia. Thank you for your post! To all of you, please do what you can to ensure your own safety. I understand that this cyclone may be detrimental to folks far inland, also. Take care! This is serious business.

rml

The cyclone system is nearly as big as the USA. Amazing

http://resources0.news.com.au/images/20 ... c-yasi.jpg

By the way for Yanks, cyclone = hurricane

Wow! That's immense!

Here are satellite pictures of the US winter storm system. I am in Houston and our power grid is under planned rolling blackouts because power usage is way up. 22 million affected. Woke to no power, then on, then off, now with power again.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/0 ... ir=Chicago

Australia is an odd and dangerous place. Bush fires, floods and cyclones + one of the biggest collections of deadly snakes and spiders.

Not to forget strange animals like kangaroos, wombats and emus. Kookaburras are cool.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011 ... 164333.htm

Flu immunisation program begins

Western Australia's health authorities will be closely monitoring the vaccination of hundreds of children as the national seasonal flu immunisation program gets underway today.

The National Immunisation Program begins today and will provide free flu vaccine for everyone aged over 6 months.

The child flu vaccination program was thrown into chaos last year when dozens of children under the age of five had serious adverse reactions to the Fluvax vaccine.

The scare created panic among parents and led to criticism of the Health Department's response.

This year, two other vaccines will be used for small children.

The Health Department's Director of Communicable Disease Control Paul Armstrong says health authorities will closely monitor a sample group of 600 children.

"We'll be following those people up with interviews to make sure that they're children didn't have any severe side effects," he said.

Dr Armstrong says swine flu will be the dominant strain during this year's flu season.

Almost 3-thousand people across Australia die every year from flu or related complications.

He says people should seriously consider getting vaccinated if they are in a high risk group.

"Those high risk groups include elderly people over the age of 65, pregnant women, aboriginal people and those with underlying medical conditions which put them at high risk for severe disease," he said.

http://www.watoday.com.au/victoria/get- ... 1bvzn.html

Get flu shot, authorities urge
March 15, 2011

HEALTH authorities are urging Victorians at high risk of flu to be immunised against it in coming months. Victorian Health Minister David Davis said people with chronic medical conditions, pregnant women, indigenous people and those aged over 65 should ask their doctor for a seasonal flu shot.

He said the vaccine was free for adults and children with conditions such as asthma, heart disease and diabetes, all residents of nursing homes, and people receiving immunosuppressive therapy such as chemotherapy. "The vaccine is safe and effective and is recommended for anyone aged six months and over who wants to reduce their risk of becoming ill from the flu this winter,'' he said.

Deputy director of the World Health Organisation's flu research centre in Melbourne, Ian Barr, said he expected to see less cases of swine flu this year based on trends in other countries.

===================

See previous post in which they predict swine flu will be the dominant flu strain. That article also said vaccinations are recommended for everyone 6 months and older and would be free. So good job on a consistent and clear message - NOT.

Good to see he's up to speed about last winter in the UK.

As well as Taiwan, Japan, Greece, Poland, Spain, Portugal, France, and most of the rest of Europe.

_________________
I used to think I had to understand in order to believe, but then I realized that I had to believe in order to understand. - Augustine