WHO raises flu alert to five as pandemic 'imminent'

Updated at: 0249 PST, Thursday, April 30, 2009 GENEVA: The World Health Organisation on Wednesday raised its flu alert to phase five out of six, WHO chief Margaret Chan said, signalling that a pandemic was "imminent" following the swine flu outbreak. "I have decided to raise the influenza pandemic alert from phase four to phase five," the WHO director general announced after an emergency meeting of the UN health agency's pandemic experts. .... ful story