The ‘extreme risk’ of a flu pandemic spreading in the UK will be
significantly increased as tourists flood to the capital this
summer in time for the Olympics. Britain is already one of the
most vulnerable countries in the world when it comes to the
spread of flu viruses, second only to Singapore in its ranking
due to its highly populated cities and the extremely mobile
population. The increase in tourists during the Olympic Games is
predicted to reach 5.3 million and many of them will arrive from
other high-risk countries, such as South Korea, the Netherlands
or Germany. There is little natural immunity against the strain
of influenza known as H5N1 or bird flu, which is highly
contagious and can in some cases prove deadly due to
complications. The World Health Organisation has warned that
should the infection rate grow, the entire world population
could be at risk. H1N1 or swine flu, is also a source of worry
for analysts at Maplewood, where the risk assessment study was
conducted. People in the UK can curre