NEW cases are turning up every hour as swine flu continues to sweep the world.
Scores have died in Mexico, tests are ongoing to confirm how many are of the H1N1 virus, and a 23-month-old child in Texas became the first person outside the epicentre to die from the disease.
Experts are scrambling to develop a vaccine, governments are stockpiling treatments and emergency services are preparing for the potential of a pandemic affecting millions of people.
West Cheshire authorities are preparing for the worst.
High street shoppers were asking for surgical masks at branches of Boots and supermarkets in the region, hours after news of the virus broke on Monday of last week.
The Countess of Chester NHS Trust has an isolation ward ready but said there had been no confirmed cases of swine flu.
Cheshire West and Chester Council spokesman Ian Callister said: “The joint Cheshire Emergency Planning Team and the council are prepared to meet a whole range of emergencies.
“We are liaising with the Health Protection Agency, the NHS and the emergency services to provide a co-ordinated response as required.”
As news of the virus broke, NHS Direct received more than 1,300 calls concerning swine flu, 238 of which were passed on to GPs for further assessment.
Website hits shot up from 54,610 to 85,500, with 2,205 people using the website’s cold and flu self-assessment tool.
