Closer To Home
I learned of the few early human cases of avian flu back when I was teaching my first sememster at Radford in the fall of 2004. It seemed so distantly not-in-my-backyard--on the far side of the planet, not my problem other than for its biological interest. Now, the situation has almost become a global matter, and of immediate concern on our side of the planet, perhaps, soon.
RICHMOND, Va. -- State and federal wildlife officials plan to check for avian influenza in birds that flock to Virginia's waterways.About 800 waterfowl and about 800 shorebirds will be tested, starting with mute swans in August. The testing area mostly will be around the Eastern Shore, the Chesapeake Bay and rivers in eastern Virginia.
Virginia's diverse wetlands make the state a key autumn destination for birds heading south, and that's one reason the state is considered a primary sampling site, according to Bob Ellis, assistant director of the wildlife division for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Ellis led development of Virginia's plan, which will extend through the fall.
[...] the virus also could come via the Atlantic Flyway, which stretches from Greenland to Canada and south through Virginia to Florida and Puerto Rico. American birds summering in Greenland mix with those migrating from Africa and Europe, where avian flu already exists.
Experts said the first infected birds could show up along the East Coast as soon as late August or September.
I wonder what the reaction in the previously indifferent public will be when the first H5N1 infected bird is discovered in North America--probably first in Alaska, then a short while later, along the eastern flyway. What kind of restraint will the media show as they alert the public to the potential risk of exposure to infected birds?
Also at risk then will be the family pets--especially cats--and of course, pet birds. How long might it be from the first instance of detection in wild birds along the coast before it shows up in domestic poultry, or in zoos; then how long before the first human case in this country? But that couldn't happen here. Could it?
America's governors think it could. And if help comes, it is far more likely to come from your state than from any national-level "emergency" management. Ultimately, we will depend on neighborhoods and communities perhaps more than hospitals, which will quickly be beyond capacity. There are still many "ifs" here, but after almost two years of following the story, it seems far too up close and personal to ignore.