KEY POINTS:
Former Racing Board chief executive John Alexander says New Zealand has absolutely no choice but to vaccinate all horses.
Alexander, currently chief executive of Eden Park Trust Board, was general manager of South Africa's biggest racing club at Turffontein when the EI virus hit South Africa in the
late 1980s.
Alexander says to avoid the carnage to the SA racing industry that he witnessed, the decision simply has to be made at Tuesday's crisis meeting in Wellington to vaccinate all horses.
"When the virus hit Johannesburg we had a task force in place within hours," he said.
"It was made up of racing club executives, stipendiary stewards, vets, trainers and jockeys representatives and we created a total lockdown.
"No one that was involved with a horse - trainers, jockeys, stable staff - were allowed to move out of the area they were in when the lockdown was put in place."
Racing in Transvaal, the Free State and in the Cape Province was closed down for three months.
"The attack on the virus was containment, vaccination and prevention." The moves were effective enough to have EI under control within three months.
"Fortunately, most of the racing clubs were in a very healthy financial position when it hit and survived as a result.
"We were all in a pretty sad state financially when it passed, but Turffontein used its racecourse for all manner of non-racing activities during the three months and already had very good assets to borrow against."
The South Africans were able to keep EI out of Natal.
"They continued to race right through our problems, but only because tough measures were put in place. No one in racing from outside Natal was allowed in during those three months, and no one in was allowed out. It worked."
Alexander said the frightening aspect of EI is the speed with which it spreads.
"Within five days of it being in Johannesburg it was in Cape Town.
"And no one was ever able to establish all the means by which it is spread."
Alexander said no country that has ever experienced EI would waste time debating whether or not to vaccinate.
"Because of the closeness of the two industries (Australia and New Zealand) if we don't vaccinate it is inevitable, in my opinion, that the virus will get here. To not vaccinate is an accident waiting to happen. "
He said the financial cost would be enormous. Alexander, a New Zealander, was head-hunted from Turffontein in 1993 to become the first CEO of a new New Zealand Racing Board. He left racing to take up his current position in 1999.
* Vaccination began yesterday on thoroughbreds prepared at Newcastle. NSW chief stipendiary steward Ray Murrihy was hopeful another crisis could be averted after EI was discovered in nearby areas.
Virus Impact
*The NSW TAB's turnover has crashed by A$104.3 million since the virus struck.
*The Victorian TAB betting has slumped by A$50.4 million.
