Subject: H1N1 Influenza

The U.S. Embassy in Seoul is transmitting the following information through the Embassy's warden system as a public service to all U.S. citizens in the Republic of Korea.  Please disseminate this message to U.S. citizens in your organizations or to other Americans you know.

This Warden Message alerts U.S. citizens to the latest information regarding human cases of H1N1 Influenza A, formerly known as swine flu. 

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) have stated that laboratory testing on a Korean citizen who recently returned from Mexico is “presumptive” for H1N1 flu virus infection.  The KCDC will provide samples to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control for further analysis to confirm the origins of the virus.  Several more persons who recently traveled to Mexico or the United States are currently being tested for possible infection.

The Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Family Affairs (MHWFA) is intensifying screening at Incheon Airport and all other international ports of entry.  Infrared thermal scanners have been set up to monitor the body temperatures of all arriving international passengers. 

The Republic of Korea has designated Mexico a “travel restricted area,” advising citizens to cancel or delay trips there.  There are no restrictions on entry to Korea from any particular destination.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) have an English-language website at http://www.cdc.go.kr/kcdchome/.  The specific pages on H1N1 influenza are currently available only in Korean at: http://www.cdc.go.kr/kcdchome/jsp/diseasedic/dic/DISEDIC0001Detail.jsp?menuid=512088&contentid=9215&boardid=null&appid=kcdcdz01&pageNum=null&sub=null&tabinx=1&q_had01=A&q_had02=2009&idxType=0&idxNum=3

For further information about H1N1 flu in English, including steps you can take to stay healthy, please consult the

Department of State information at http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_pandemic.html,

the United States Centers for Disease Control website at http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu, and

the World Health Organization website at http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html.           

For additional travel safety information, please consult the State Department's website at www.travel.state.gov.

If you did not receive this message directly via the U.S. Embassy’s warden email system, we encourage you, as an American living or traveling in South Korea, to register with the Embassy through the State Department’s travel registration website, https://travelregistration.state.gov.  Americans without internet access may register in person at the Embassy.  Registration is a voluntary way of telling us that you, as an American citizen, are in Korea, whether for a long-term stay or for a short visit.  In the event of an emergency, we use registration information to communicate with you.  This could include a family emergency in which relatives in the United States request that the Embassy contact you. Registration also automatically signs you up to receive our emailed monthly newsletter and periodic warden messages about safety, security, and other topics, such as voting.

If you choose not to register, you may still subscribe to our email warden message system simply by providing your email address on the Embassy’s website at www.asktheconsul.org.

For the latest security information worldwide, Americans should regularly monitor the State Department’s website at www.travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, and Travel Alerts can be found.  Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the Unites States, or, for callers from outside the United States and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444.  These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays). 

Embassy Seoul contact information:

American Citizen Services
U.S. Embassy Seoul
32 Sejongno, Jongno-gu
Seoul 110-710, Korea
Tel: 02-397-4114 (operator available 24 hours a day)
Fax: 02-397-4101
DSN: 721-4114

Website:  http://www.asktheconsul.org/
Email: seoul_ACS@state.gov

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