The World Health Organisation on Wednesday increased its global alert level in response to the spread of swine flu after the US reported the first death from the disease outside Mexico.
Margaret Chan, the WHO director-general, said anti-flu measures must now be undertaken with increased urgency.
“All countries should immediately now activate their pandemic preparedness plans,” she told reporters in Geneva. “It really is all of humanity that is under threat in a pandemic.”
The alert is now at an phase five out of a possible six, meaning that a pandemic is imminent and the disease can be spread from human to human transmission in a sustainable manner. The move came after the US reported the first death from the disease outside Mexico.
世界衛生組織(WHO)周三提升了全球警戒級別，以應對豬流感疫情的傳播。此前美國報告了墨西哥以外首宗豬流感死亡病例。
世衛組織總干事陳馮富珍(Margaret Chan)表示，現在必須加緊落實各項抗擊豬流感的措施。