NY1.com

  71º

You are not signed in  |  Sign in here  |  Help

You're viewing a lite version of NY1.com

Time Warner Cable customers: Sign in with your TWC ID for video access.

Get my TWC ID. | Get TWC service. | Read the FAQ.

08/06/2009 05:25 PM

Religious Leaders Take Part In H1N1 Outbreak Drill

By: NY1 News

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

Brooklyn officials, heath experts and religious leaders took part in a H1N1 flu pandemic exercise Thursday.

The goal was to provide more information about the virus to the religious community, because it can be the first place many people turn to when they have questions.

More than 150 people ran through various scenarios, examining how they would respond to a H1N1 outbreak.

"Many of the indicators are pointing in the direction of a second wave this fall. So with that freight train possible barreling down on the community we thought it would be a great idea to get this information out there," said Chuck Frank of the MCNY Community Action Project.

"We know that our temples, mosques, churches and synagogues draw large numbers of people. So we want to provide them not only with information but also get a sense of their capacity to handle emergencies to look at their particular situation," said Deputy Brooklyn Borough President Yvonne Graham. "And that's why I think this is unique because we're going to do and help them develop strategies."

Organizers say the exercise was the first of its kind for the religious community.

Meanwhile, several drug makers are on track to start delivering the first batches of a H1N1 flu vaccine next month.

The World Health Organization says manufacturers have started testing it in humans and that early safety results should be available in September.