Australia tests 128 people for swine disease

Australia increased its surveillance against swine flu with the number of people being tested for the deadly disease being increased to 128 from 90 by the authorities.

The increase came after World Health Organisation raised its flu alert level to phase five out of six, signalling that a pandemic was 'imminent'.

It called on all countries to immediately activate their pandemic preparedness plans.

Federal health minister Nicola Roxon was qouted saying in an AAP report that increased airport surveillance was responsible for the jump in the number of people being tested.

"We still have no confirmed cases of the disease in Australia, but it certainly means that the severity of this disease and its capacity to spread is heightened," she commented, adding, the likelihood that Australia would avoid a case of swine flu was decreasing.

NSW premier Nathan Rees said he believed the nation's busiest international airport -- Sydney's Kingsford-Smith -- was well prepared for a possible case of the flu.

"All of the appropriate contingency measures in place deal with this threat," he said.

Meanwhile, media reports said that passengers on Australia-bound flights may be forced to sign cards declaring they do not have flu symptoms and clear thermal scanners as part of preventive measures.

Millions of health declaration cards were distributed to airlines yesterday before any decision to force all inbound passengers to complete them.

Thermal scanners, to screen arrivals for high temperatures, were also sent to eight major airports -- Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Cairns, the Gold Coast and Darwin.

But the health minister said the government had not yet decided on the use of the cards or scanners to avoid creating long delays at airports.

Health authorities would give expert advice on whether to use both tools, given that 'we believe it's a day-by-day, hour-by-hour proposition', she said.