Australia: Government Plan Says to Stockpile Food and Water; “But We Don’t Want a Run at the Shops”

April 30th, 2009

Via: Sydney Morning Herald:

AUSTRALIANS have been advised to stockpile food and water after the World Health Organisation raised its swine flu alert to phase five yesterday, indicating an imminent pandemic.

The Federal Government’s pandemic plan, a 132-page manual issued to medics, media and the public, insists that once the world reaches phase five, Australians should stock their pantries with food and bottled water to last 14 days, check on elderly neighbours and put emergency numbers by the phone.

But yesterday a spokesman for the Department of Health and Ageing called for calm, saying the Government did not want to spark panic buying – ignoring its own plan, already issued to hospitals across the nation.

“I agree that is it confusing,” the spokesman said, admitting he had not read the pandemic plan despite being employed to answer questions about it from national media. “The manual may say people should be preparing but we don’t want a run at the shops,” he said.

WHO’s updated alert, one step short of a full pandemic, was announced yesterday after a toddler in the US became the first to die of the disease outside Mexico.

Posted in Health, Kill Off | Top Of Page

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.