Swine flu strikes 1-year-old: Daycare children and staff quarantined

Thirty-seven children and seven staff at a daycare centre in Papatoetoe are being placed in home isolation after a 1-year-old boy who attended the centre this week was diagnosed with swine flu yesterday.

This followed the case yesterday of a second passenger with swine flu who arrived on a flight from North America last weekend.

The deputy director of public health, Dr Fran McGrath, said the rapid increase in the number of confirmed cases in Australia would make it hard to keep swine flu from spreading to New Zealand.

Australian health authorities yesterday said they had 878 confirmed cases of swine flu - up from 634 cases 24 hours earlier.

The infection has been reported in 66 countries and there have been nearly 20,000 cases, including 117 deaths, according to the World Health Organisation.

Auckland Regional Public Health Service clinical director Dr Julia Peters said it appeared the 1-year-old boy became ill after the family returned from Melbourne on May 26.

The parents took the boy to the doctor on Wednesday and the infection was confirmed yesterday.

Dr Peters said the public health service was still in the process of contacting the other 36 children who attended the Tama Ale Eleele A'oga Amata childcare centre in Wylie Rd, Papatoetoe, and seven staff to place them in home isolation and offer them the anti-flu drug Tamiflu.

The service took three more swabs yesterday from children and staff members who were showing flu-like symptoms.

The centre will be closed on Monday, and a decision is yet to be made on when it will reopen.

CALLING FOR HELP

Families from the centre can call the Auckland 0800 FLU LINE (0800 358 5463) for further information and advice.