Baxter: Product contained live bird flu virus

[lovuian]

Run time: 01:42 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjLuj6r-fRY   Posted on YouTube: April 30, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: April 30, 2009 By DU Member: lovuian Views on DU: 770

 
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2009/02/27/8560781.html

The company that released contaminated flu virus material from a plant in Austria confirmed Friday that the experimental product contained live H5N1 avian flu viruses.

And an official of the World Health Organization’s European operation said the body is closely monitoring the investigation into the events that took place at Baxter International’s research facility in Orth-Donau, Austria.

“At this juncture we are confident in saying that public health and occupational risk is minimal at present,” medical officer Roberta Andraghetti said from Copenhagen, Denmark.

“But what remains unanswered are the circumstances surrounding the incident in the Baxter facility in Orth-Donau.”

The contaminated product, a mix of H3N2 seasonal flu viruses and unlabelled H5N1 viruses, was supplied to an Austrian research company. The Austrian firm, Avir Green Hills Biotechnology, then sent portions of it to sub-contractors in the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Germany.

The contamination incident, which is being investigated by the four European countries, came to light when the subcontractor in the Czech Republic inoculated ferrets with the product and they died. Ferrets shouldn’t die from exposure to human H3N2 flu viruses.

Public health authorities concerned about what has been described as a “serious error” on Baxter’s part have assumed the death of the ferrets meant the H5N1 virus in the product was live. But the company, Baxter International Inc., has been parsimonious about the amount of information it has released about the event.

On Friday, the company’s director of global bioscience communications confirmed what scientists have suspected.

“It was live,” Christopher Bona said in an email.
more...

this more evidence that the swine flu maybe man made

[MercutioATC]

1. I was right with you until your last line.

There is NO evidence that this swine flu is manmade.

It's serious tinfoilhattery.

[webDude]

2. No, but it is evidence that the various viruses were combined in...

...a single vaccine that was then injected into appropriate incubators; humans. This would make mutations with various "pieces" of the originals. All that would be needed then was to just add swine, intentionally or just dumb "luck".

This does not prove intent, nor does it dis-prove it.

We are not at that stage yet, of course, but to have a knee-jerk reaction, assaulting the messenger instead of the message, is equally wrong, and raises questions about intentions and motives of your own.

[MercutioATC]

3. No, it's not.

Baxter f'ed up and shipped a combination they shouldn't have. Those samples were injected into ferrets (not humans).

That's evidence that serious mistakes can be and are made. It's not evidence that this strain is manmade, either intentionally or unintentionally.

To suggest that making that leap is tinfoilhattery IS attacking the message. To suggest that making that statement calls my "motives" into question is also tinfoilhattery.

...and I'm assaulting your message, not you personally...

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.