Photo: St. Francis Prep in Queens, thought to be the epicenter of the NYC swine flu outbreak.
Posted: Wednesday, 29 April 2009 10:59AM
AUDIO: Swine Flu Virus Continues To Crawl Across NYC
NEW YORK (AP/1010 WINS) -- Across the New York City area Wednesday there are growing signs that the Swine Flu virus is moving beyond St. Francis Preparatory school, where sick students started lining up last week at the nurse's office. The outbreak came just days after a group of students returned from spring break in Cancun.
Coming Up:
Governor Paterson and State Health Commissioner Richard Daines will hold a noon news conference to update the public with the latest swine flu developments across the state.
NYC Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden will hold a 2 p.m. news conference to update the public on the latest Swine Flu developments in NYC.
At the 2,700-student school, the largest Roman Catholic high school in the nation, "many hundreds of students were ill with symptoms that are most likely swine flu,'' said Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden.
The first U.S. death was confirmed by the CDC Wednesday morning -- a 23-month-old Texas child died as a result of the virus.
There were indications that the outbreak may have spread beyond the school, with two people having to be hospitalized and officials closing a school for autistic children down the road from St. Francis.
Those cases have not yet been confirmed.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the hospitalized are a child in the Bronx and an adult in Brooklyn.
So far, New York has 45 confirmed cases -- which are all linked to St. Francis Prep -- 44 in the city and one for someone who lives on Long Island. Twelve St. Francis teachers reported flu-like symptoms as well, said the principal, Brother Leonard Conway.
Bloomberg said that 82 of 380 students at P.S. 177, a school for autistic children, called in sick this week.
A third school in Manhattan -- Ascension School on the Upper West Side -- is being evaluated because at least six students there are sick, Frieden said. Father John Duffell of the Ascension School says at least one student is sick with a high fever.
Frieden said that some of the students at P.S. 177 have siblings that attend St. Francis.
"It is here and it is spreading,'' Frieden said.
Still, U.S. officials stressed there was no need for panic and noted that flu outbreaks are quite common every year. The CDC estimates about 36,000 people in the U.S. died of flu-related causes each year, on average, in the 1990s.
The continued increase in cases, and even the first death, was not surprising. For days, CDC officials said they expected to see more confirmed cases and more severe illnesses. Health officials nationwide stepped up efforts to look for symptoms, especially among people who had traveled to Mexico.
Scientists hope to have a key ingredient for a vaccine ready in early May, but it still will take a few months before any shots are available for the first required safety testing. Using samples of the flu taken from people who fell ill in Mexico and the U.S., scientists are engineering a strain that could trigger the immune system without causing illness.
"We're about a third of the way'' to that goal, said Dr. Ruben Donis of the CDC.
The U.S. stepped up checks of people entering the country and warned Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico. Canada, Israel and France issued similar travel advisories.
New York City officials called on the CDC for additional resources to investigate the outbreak at St. Francis Prep.
About 1,500 students replied to surveys sent out by the NYC health department about the outbreak, helping the city get a better sense of how the virus is spreading. Some students have complained of sudden nausea; others dealt with high fever, sore throats, coughs and aches.
Rachel Mele and her mother, Linda, were relieved when the 16-year-old's fever broke Tuesday for the first time in five days. It had been hovering around 101.
The family could finally breathe easy, a relief after a terrifying night Thursday in which Mele's parents bundled her into the car and rushed her to the hospital when they realized she was having trouble breathing.
"I could barely even catch my breath. I've never felt a pain like that before,'' Mele said. "My throat, it was burning, like, it was the worst burning sensation I ever got before. I couldn't even swallow. I couldn't even let up air. I could barely breathe through my mouth.''
Inset Photo: (top) Leslie Moorer, right, brings her daughter Diamond, 11, with a protective mask around her neck to the Ascension Catholic School, on the Upper West Side.(bottom) Kennedy Quinn, 5, right, stands with her mother Travoya Collins as she plays a game outside the Ascension School.
TM & Copyright 2009 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO & EYE Logo TM & Copyright 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. TheAssociated Press contributed to this report.
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At the 2,700-student school, the largest Roman Catholic high school in the nation, "many hundreds of students were ill with symptoms that are most likely swine flu,'' said Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden. 
Scientists hope to have a key ingredient for a vaccine ready in early May, but it still will take a few months before any shots are available for the first required safety testing. Using samples of the flu taken from people who fell ill in Mexico and the U.S., scientists are engineering a strain that could trigger the immune system without causing illness.
