Dr John Gallagher MB MMedSc FRCPI FFOMI
Occupational Physician,

Employment Health Advisors

A source of infection is rarely identified for sporadic cases of Legionnaires’ disease. Researchers at the UK Health Protection Agency found that professional drivers are five times more commonly represented among community acquired sporadic cases in England and Wales than expected. The researchers therefore investigated possible risks related to driving or spending time in a motor vehicle.
A case control study including all surviving community acquired sporadic cases in England and Wales with onset between 12 July 2008 and 9 March 2009 was carried out. Cases were contacted by phone and controls were consecutively recruited. The questionnaire included questions on driving habits, potential sources in vehicles and known risk factors. 75 cases and 67 controls were included in the study.

Multivariable analysis identified two risk factors linked to vehicle use associated with an increased risk of Legionnaires’ disease: driving through industrial areas and driving or being a passenger in a vehicle with windscreen wiper fluid not containing added screenwash. Not adding screenwash to windscreen wiper fluid is a previously unidentified risk factor and appears to be strongly associated with community acquired sporadic cases of Legionnaires’ disease. The researchers estimated that around 20% of community acquired sporadic cases could be attributed to this exposure. A simple recommendation to use screenwash may mitigate transmission of Legionella bacteria to drivers and passengers [47].
Source: http://osha.europa.eu/en/publications/literature_reviews/legionella-policy-overview.pdf

http://www.who.int/influenza/surveillance_monitoring/updates/en/index.html

As of 29th July 2011, influenza activity in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere remained low or undetectable. In the tropical zone, influenza transmission continued in a few countries of the Americas (Dominican Republic, El Salvador, and Colombia), western Africa (Ghana and Cameroon), and parts of Asia (India, Bangladesh, and Singapore). Influenza transmission in South Africa has declined to low levels, with mainly influenza A (H1N1) 2009 detections. In Australia, ILI consultations and laboratory-confirmed cases continued to increase. ILI activity in New Zealand has returned to baseline levels. http://www.who.int/csr/disease/influenza/en/

HUIZHOU, Guangdong – A fire that broke out early on Monday at an oil refinery in South China’s Guangdong province did not threaten the safety of the nearby Dayawan Nuclear Power Station, local authorities have said. The fire was reported at 4:10 am after oil ignited after leaking from equipment at the Huizhou Refinery run by China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), said a spokesman from the Dayawan Economic and Technical Development Zone. Flames rose to more than 100 meters and 63 fire engines were used to fight the fire, the spokesman said. No casualties were reported. As of 5:20 pm, the fire had been extinguished, according to sources with the Guangdong provincial fire control authorities.However, worries about further incidents related to the fire were raised among netizens, given that the refinery is only 40 km from the Dayawan Nuclear Power Station, which is one of the major nuclear installations on Guangdong’s coast.”I thought of the nuclear power plant when the fire was reported. It could have been so dangerous,” said YanyanV, a netizen who was commenting via weibo.com. Pictures posted online appeared to show people who live near Dayawan Bay fleeing the area after the fire was reported. However, the fire control authorities said any concerns about the blaze impacting the nuclear power plant were groundless. “The fire is under control. The fire-fighting materials used have been collected and transferred to an oil spill containment pool. There is no need to worry about further incidents,” Gao Gang, a spokesman from the Guangdong provincial fire control authority, told China Daily. Representatives from the Ministry of Environmental Protection stationed within Dayawan Nuclear Power Station also said the fire would not affect the facility. As of 2 pm on Monday, the fire had been contained to an area of about 10 square meters, sources from the fire control authority said. Firefighters continued to fight the remaining flames and were mindful of a large quantity of materials at the site, including 1,170 tons of dimethylbenzene, an inflammable chemical.

All indicators of influenza activity in Ireland continue to remain at low levels. The sentinel GP influenza-like illness (ILI) consultation rates remained low and below baseline levels during weeks 24 and 25 2011. The proportion of influenza–related calls to GP Out-of-Hours services remained at low levels during weeks 24 and 25 2011. No positive influenza specimens were detected by the National Virus Reference Laboratory (NVRL) from sentinel or non-sentinel sources during weeks 24 and 25 2011. No new general outbreaks of influenza/ILI have been reported since week 5 2011.
As of 1st July 2011, influenza activity in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere is at baseline inter-seasonal levels. Transmission in tropical areas is low overall with focal areas of transmission noted in a few countries of Central America and northern South America, western and eastern regions of sub-Saharan Africa, and tropical Asia. The influenza season has now started in South Africa and may be starting in Australia as well. South Africa has continued to report increasing numbers of both mild and severe cases, primarily related to influenza A (H1N1) 2009. Australia has noted a recent increase in emergency room visits due to ILI and significantly increased notifications of influenza activity in the states of South Australia and Queensland. http://www.who.int/csr/disease/influenza/en/