A group of 25 staff and students of Rangitoto College on Auckland's North Shore are being tested for the deadly swine influenza after returning from a school trip to Mexico.
The group of 22 senior students and three teachers arrived into New Zealand after spending three weeks in Mexico.
After some of the group presented symptoms of an influenza-like illness, the Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) is conducting preliminary tests to determine the cause of the illness.
"We are taking this very seriously and doing everything necessary to manage this situation in Auckland," says ARPHS Clinical Director Dr Julia Peters. "The Ministry of Health is managing the response to this issue at a national level."
More than 80 people in Mexico are believed to have died and over 1,300 are sick as a result of catching swine flu which has led to the closure of schools in Mexico City.
There have also been cases of the swine flu reported in New York, California and Kansas and a British Airways pilot has been hospitalised in London with flu symptoms after returning from Mexico.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the outbreaks a "public health event of international concern" and said they could cause a pandemic - a global epidemic of serious disease.
Normal border control procedures were in place, and the WHO has asked all countries to "intensify surveillance for unusual outbreaks of influenza-like illness and severe pneumonia".
The New Zealand Ministry of Health it is in contact with the WHO and was liaising with Australia over its response.
"We are implementing the early stages of our pandemic response plan," a spokesman said. "However at this stage there is no indication that this will be needed."
The best things you can do to stop the spread of any type of influenza virus is to:
- Stay at home and away from others if you are sick
- Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue
- Put used tissues into a rubbish bin
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth - germs spread that way
- Be careful to wash hands often with soap and dry them thoroughly - hand hygiene is critical: even when you start to feel better there is still a risk of infecting others, so keep to the 20/20 rule - 20 seconds washing and 20 seconds drying
- Keep surfaces clean at home, school and work.
Travellers returning from Mexico or the affected parts of the United States who have symptoms of influenza are advised, before returning to work or school, to contact their GP or an after hours medical centre by phone, for advice about what to do and how to get checked out.
Anybody experiencing warning signs of severe influenza illness such as rapid breathing, difficulty breathing, chest pain, severe vomiting or if a child is not responding or is difficult to wake up, should get urgent medical attention.
3 News / NZPA
Watch the full interview with ARPHS Clinical Director Dr Julia Peters