READ: Pandemic-causing "Asian flu" accidentally released

**TechZ** · April 14th, 2005, 05:14 AM

- The virus that caused the 1957 "Asian flu" pandemic has been accidentally released by a lab in the US, and sent all over the world in test kits which scientists are now scrambling to destroy. There are fears the virus could escape the labs, as the mistake was discovered after the virus escaped from a kit at a high-containment lab in Canada. Such an escape could spread worldwide, as demonstrated in Russia in the 1970s.

**RejectionMan** · April 14th, 2005, 08:53 AM

fun that it clames it escaped a high containmen lab in canada.... sound like more USA fear mongering, as we have only one high containment lab in canada. If this is the same virus Mayet was talking about then little wonder it escaped it only classifyed as threa 2 which doesn't require high containment!

If the USDA and the CDC had bothered to control it and but hte right lables on stuff in the first place it would not have happened at all.

**RejectionMan** · April 14th, 2005, 09:01 AM

"Test kits for flu are not handled at a high level of biological containment as it is generally assumed they do not carry unusually dangerous viruses."

I was also thinking they could have also just missed placed the test kit... but then i read about cross contamination indicating that a) it escaped and mutated or b) something that looks like it mutated. either way its in a containment lab so its not going far, unless someone screwes up bad.

the winnipeg lab is built inside ofa level 3/4 containment facility the labs them selves are individual certifyed for their containment level 1-4, so to get out it basicaly has to be done intentiaonaly. If their was such a thing as level 5 the winnipeg lab would be it, but im sure that their will be some big todo about how the thing got into another sample.... and just like any thing else that Canada has thats better than the US the US will demand it gets shut down for it.