Race Against the Killer Flu

Film Summary

duration52:00 mins
categoryCurrent Events & Society / People & Places / Science & Nature
locationAsia

Brief Summary

Imagine a flu like this one: it kills 70 per cent of those it infects, and scientists fear it could one day be as contagious as the common cold, spurring a global crisis of chilling proportions. Borders would close, panic could break out, martial law could be imposed, governments might be brought down and the global economy could shudder to a standstill. A frightening prospect definitely - and not as farfetched as you may think, according to the best epidemic specialists in the world. A deadly strain of avian influenza, or H5N1 as it is also known, has been making headlines around the globe for some time. It first made the news in Asia in 1997, when a variant of the strain showed a capacity to be transmitted to humans. Government officials acted promptly and Hong Kong’s chicken population - comprising some 1.5 million chickens - was destroyed. All was quiet for a couple of years but in 2003 H5N1 resurfaced in Southeast Asia, claiming the lives of more than 50 people – 70 per cent of those who became infected...a clear and ominous sign that the virus was mutating.

In 2004, a possible case of human to human transmission was identified and the prospect of a mutation into an airborne virus, capable of killing more people than the 1918 flu pandemic, became a real possibility, raising alarms around the world. Race Against the Killer Flu uses a combination of CGI and re-enactments to explain how such a pandemic could arise and its likely implications around the globe. It looks at the prospects for developing a vaccine for this rapidly mutating virus and also gains rare access inside the 'War Room' at the World Health Organisation as the virus hunter team runs a hypothetical simulation of what the world can expect in the event of a global outbreak of H5N1. Unnerving and fascinating in equal measure, the programme shows how scientists across the planet are racing to get one step ahead of this predator. However, even if H5N1 is stopped in its tracks, there is no shortage of other flu viruses ready to audition for the part. Virus hunters agree on one thing - it's not just a matter of whether the next pandemic will strike, but when.

Year Filmed: 2005

Prod. Code: 14008

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