In 1979, a strain of influenza virus leaked out from a Chinese lab attempting to develop new flu vaccines. This strain of flu, later deemed H1-N1, began to circulate the globe, fated to return in three decades.

While this may sound like the plot of a B-movie horror film, in truth it represents the reality of the early beginning of the disease known as swine flu.

    During the early life of H1-N1, the flu strain mutated as it passed through several host species such as swine, evolving into the current form.

Due to the dangers posed by this swine flu, hundreds of schools shut down and countless communities found themselves warned against attending public events in their area.

     “Schools are being closed if even one person has swine flu. So far Butte County has been lucky to escape even with the trips to Mexico,” said Enloe nurse Stephanie Wilcomb.

    One case of probable swine flu occurred in Butte County; a man in Oroville displayed severe flu symptoms consistent with those observed in swine flu patients. Several others exhibited worse-than-usual flu symptoms which then abated. No cases of swine flu have yet been confirmed, however.

    “We had a close call in Butte County. If [swine flu] had spread any farther in Butte County, PV could have been closed,” said PV Health Aide Jan Hayes.

    However, the severity of the situation may be far less dire than reactions may suggest. According to the statistics compiled by the World Health Organization, swine flu has only caused 65 deaths out of 6,500 confirmed cases, placing the mortality rate of the disease at 1%.

The majority of confirmed cases reside in Mexico, where the flu first appeared; many of the cases found in other countries are believed to originate there.

    Those most at risk consist of the elderly, children and people with compromised immune systems. Despite the low risk of death for infected patients, swine flu still exhibits a worrying rate of infection.

    “People have been worried because this flu is so contagious…even though there have been less than 100 deaths, an estimated 23,000 people have been infected.” said radiologist Dr. Mauricio Schrader.

    In response to the threat of this virus, the World Health Organization, aided by countries around the world and other medical assistance organizations, mobilized much of its medical resources to curtail the threat, possibly reducing the severity of the outbreak. This coalition distributed billions of dollars of supplies such as anti-viral drugs and containment masks to hospitals in their areas in case of contagious infection.

    Several local facilities including Feather River and Enloe Hospitals received a share of these materials to better treat any possible outbreaks in Butte County. Efforts around the world still continue to control the risk of swine flu.