IF YOUR TRAVELING:
The swine flu outbreak has set off alarm bells for the $770 billion U.S. travel industry, which one expert warns could become the "ground zero" of the economic impact from this latest health threat. "How significant could the flu be for the industry is the $64,000 question," said Geoff Freeman, senior vice president with the non-profit U.S. Travel Association. "From a global perspective, this story is just 36 hours old," he said. "But from 9 a.m. [Monday] we've gotten dozens of calls every hour from hotels, theme parks, car rental companies, gaming and other prominent destinations like Orlando and Las Vegas. Everyone is immensely concerned. They're asking what is the plan? What do we do?" As high as 75% of customers who had booked flights to beach resorts in Mexico have already rescheduled or cancelled their plans.
LOCALLY HERE IN TORONTO:
For those interested in keeping up with the latest developments and how the city of Toronto is responding to the situation, here's a roundup of recent developments.
- The city of Toronto has posted a Swine Flu page on their web site with links to suggestions and reports from Toronto Public Health.
- The Globe and Mail reported that four Ontario residents have come down with mild cases of the Swine Flu.
- The drop in the TSX (and global stock markets) was blamed on the Swine Flu.
- A critically ill Toronto woman was flown back to Toronto despite Swine Flu concerns.
- The Toronto Star has a Swine Flu pag.
- And, of course, we can follow the latest Swine Flu news and rumours via Twitter at #swineflu.
(BE SAFE)
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