Swine Flu - General Discussion and how it affects Disney

[alwaysready]

We are planning on arriving at WDW on May 25th. It would be ok if those that are worried would stay home, especially if you are planning on going on or around May 25th. We would not think less of you. Thanks

 

[DisneyNewbiie]

I am so, so sorry. I really, really hate that. 120 chains. I am honestly in tears for you guys that have been planning and planning.




I would not look at you crazy! This thread is quite a piece of work, isn't it! We have some pretty varied opinions and lots of real people living real life...ya know.



The fact that Disney is not charging people...should give us all pause. Frankly.

Just got off the phone with disney there is a charge and if you are on the buy 4 get 3 deal.you will lose that deal.

 

[Lv4Disney]

from Alwayready

 

[Colleen27]

To WeLoveLilo05:

We're bummed that we have to postpone... but for us, that is the key...
We understand that Disney is allowing people to reschedule without a change fee, so we're gonna take adavantange of that... better a little late than not at all...

I'm curious, for those that are planning to reschedule... When are you rebooking for? I guess I'm seeing a bit of a contradiction here, in cancelling now for what is as yet a relatively minor flu on the assumption that it could escalate, but then rebooking despite the knowledge that pandemic flus tend to come in waves. I keep seeing the comparison to 1918 as a reason to be afraid, but the spring flu in 1918 was the milder version. The flu that hit in the fall and spread through the winter and into spring of 1919 was the killer. If I were inclined to worry about this flu, I'd be more concerned about fall travel than travel in the immediate future.

 

[famsen]

This sounds like GREAT information and great news! Do you have a link or source we can check out for more info?

http://www.latimes.com/features/heal...,3606923.story


I posted this a few posts up. I believe this is where the information comes from. Dr. Tim Johnson report that this is good news on ABC World News Tonight.

 

[ccvb]

I'm curious, for those that are planning to reschedule... When are you rebooking for? I guess I'm seeing a bit of a contradiction here, in cancelling now for what is as yet a relatively minor flu on the assumption that it could escalate, but then rebooking despite the knowledge that pandemic flus tend to come in waves. I keep seeing the comparison to 1918 as a reason to be afraid, but the spring flu in 1918 was the milder version. The flu that hit in the fall and spread through the winter and into spring of 1919 was the killer. If I were inclined to worry about this flu, I'd be more concerned about fall travel than travel in the immediate future.

I was wondering the same thing.

 

[luvthemouse71]

I just saw a news article that said the face masks are worthless because the flu virus is smaller than the masks filters.

I just heard a physician say in an interview that the N95's may be effective, if used properly.I have a box of them here..it says according to the CDC, they filter out 95% of viruses and bacteria. I got some from a medical supply place and some from CVS today.

I think many people wear them wrong though..I know we get fit tested at the hospital for them(we have to wear them when our PTs have TB or other nasties). Luckily, I wear the average size.

If you look at most masks, N95 or otherwise, there is a thin metal strip across the bridge of the nose..this is so you can press it and make a snug fit. It should fit securely around your nose and mouth..you should not be able to feel air escaping from the sides. You may feel silly, but speak a few sentences, move around a bit, bend over etc to make sure the mask isn't gaping.

Update...I found this article-gives more indepth info regarding N95's and their proper use..

http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/ppe/masksrespirators.html

 

[dpayne1969]

I work for a school here in Ok & I honestly think taking bleach out of our school system was a huge mistake! Bleach kills germs! I use clorox clean up in my house to kill germs. My concern with this flu is that my son had mono about a month ago & it spread like wild fire in our town, it was awful!! His immune system is shot from the mono & I would hate to be in Disney & him get sick. I am not canceling though, I am going to bring clorox wipes to wipe down the room as well as some Lysol. I am also bringing Nyquil in case someone does get sick we can have some good ole medicine to help us rest. I think the public schools need to be helping out more in making sure your students wash their hands. We have a sink in our class & as the kids come in I tell them to go wash their hands . They hate it too, ughhhhhhhhh but hey at least I know they are clean then. I am spring cleaning like daily in my home hoping to not get sick period before we leave. I am also washing bedding more frequently, just little things to hopefully not get any kind of illness before we leave.

 

[mamalle]

we have the N95 also in the er I work in. I used one last sunday for a guy that we were ruling out..

 

[Colleen27]

The fact that Disney is not charging people...should give us all pause. Frankly.

The only thing that can be read into whether or not Disney is charging for changes (I've heard some reports that they aren't and others that they are, so I suspect at this point it is one of those things that depends on which CM you talk to) is that they don't want the bad PR of scared parents going to the media with a sob story about how they lost so much money when they cancelled their dream vacation to keep Little Precious safe from the flu that's got everyone so scared.

 

[avahoneybee]

This is just an elaborate scheme by the Mousekeepers to have guests do their jobs for them.

 

[praline3001]

I work for a school here in Ok & I honestly think taking bleach out of our school system was a huge mistake! Bleach kills germs! I use clorox clean up in my house to kill germs. My concern with this flu is that my son had mono about a month ago & it spread like wild fire in our town, it was awful!! His immune system is shot from the mono & I would hate to be in Disney & him get sick. I am not canceling though, I am going to bring clorox wipes to wipe down the room as well as some Lysol. I am also bringing Nyquil in case someone does get sick we can have some good ole medicine to help us rest. I think the public schools need to be helping out more in making sure your students wash their hands. We have a sink in our class & as the kids come in I tell them to go wash their hands . They hate it too, ughhhhhhhhh but hey at least I know they are clean then. I am spring cleaning like daily in my home hoping to not get sick period before we leave. I am also washing bedding more frequently, just little things to hopefully not get any kind of illness before we leave.

I have to totally agree with you. I know the fumes can bother some BUT if used in the evening and used correctly by morning the fumes will have left. I am ALL about the GREEN cleaning. I do try and use green friendly cleaners, I do try and save on water and use energy efficient light bulbs. My way of thinking is ~ the threat is big enough for me to pull out the BIG GUNS
I am using clorox bleach clean up in the bathrooms and kitchen. I also wipe down all door knobs and light switches with bleach. I let it dry completely... I do this as soon as the kids walk out the door for school (remember I have 3 kids in 3 different schools so our risk is a bit higher than someone with no kids) By early afternoon the fumes are gone. I then spray lysol spray in the bedrooms and living areas ~ areas I can't use bleach.

Think of this as spring cleaning LOL I am wiping everything down in our house. Not only does it get rid of any hiding germs that are non piggy type ~ it will ensure your family doesn't get the regular flu and have a weaken immune system if the swine flu hits your area. You don't want to already be sick with something else and then catch it!

I also have been super fussy with my kids about the hand washing. I am always fussing but NOW mama gets evil if they don't come home and wash their hands the second they walk in the door.

The extra cleaning does make me FEEL better. Like I am actually DOING something rather than just watching the news and becoming worried. ALL of the moms hear KNOW what I am talking about

There is NOTHING better than cleaning if your good and ticked off or worried about something

 

[mitros]

Health officials are watching a group of 18 band students from South Carolina, who attended a camp at WDW last week, and came down with flu-like symptoms.
The school was closed on Wednesday, as district employees wearing gloves and masks swarmed through the 330,000 square foot building, sprayed disinfectant on desks, lockers, doors and bathrooms in a full-scale deep clean of the school, according to news sources.

 

[avahoneybee]

I was wondering the same thing.

There will probably be a vaccine available by then.

 

[famsen]

I want to say that I am literally a hypocondriac. I have anxiety disorders for which I take medication. I am a germaphobe. I have done a lot of research on this swine flu. I have kept up on the news from all sources. I have talked to my own physicians. After weighing all the information that I now know, I am not overly concerned about this. I will be prepared and cautious and will be the first to book it out of there should anything crazy happen while we are at WDW.

I almost had a stroke over the anthrax mailings. I got my mail with a face mask on everyday. I stuffed my unopened mail directly into a plastic bin and kept it there for a month. When SARS came around, I thought for sure we were all going to die within a few weeks. Since those scares, I refused to let others cause me to panic. I have learned how to read media's reporting of big ratings stories and how. I have educated myself on what pandemics are and what plans the government has to deal with biological threats. I learned that knowledge is power and armed with correct information, I feel more in control.

We arrive at WDW on Sunday for 6 nights at AKV.
I will have my laptop with me and will report on how the situation it as we go.
I hope I can be of some help to those of you deciding to postpone or keep plans for upcoming trips.

 

[mitros]

There will probably be a vaccine available by then.

That's not necessarily the case.

 

[disny45]

Just got off the phone with disney there is a charge and if you are on the buy 4 get 3 deal.you will lose that deal.

i spoke with disney as well. think it might depend on who you talk to. i was told yes we can cancel and rebook for a later time as long as the 4/3 deal was available for the time we wanted to reschedule for and available rooms if you already booked the deal and no cancellation fees.
i did not speak with a manager/supervisor but i'm pretty sure it will probably come to that for some people to get the right answer.

 

[jamstew]

I may be entirely off base altogether, but I read this differently. I thought this was a well-written commentary on the reality of the "precautions" that posters plan to take. If you follow the planned precautions through to their logical extreme, this is where you get to. If you're not planning to be that extreme with the precautions, then how are you possibly mitigating your risks? And that seems like a heck of a bad way to spend a vacation.

Of course, I might be entirely wrong, and this might be a completely serious response, in which case I totally agree, the OP would be miserable right now.

That's the way I read it, too FWIW

 

[praline3001]

I do want to add something really really sad on my part.

While grocery shopping today I was in the meat dept and saw some tasty pork chops

I KNOW I KNOW you can't catch it by eating pork but the mama in me said, "Nope no pork this week...just in case"

I know totally sad

 

[jodeeb]

I feel everyone's pain. We are planning to stay at the Polynesian in mid June. I am paying my balance off tomarrow and up till now was totally jazzed about doing so. I've been planning this for over a year. Now, I am still excited about paying it off, but there will be a nagging thing in the back of my head wondering if I am doing the right thing. Ive already made a countdown chart for the kids and dd is so excited it it is all she can think about. She will be devistated if we will have to cancel.

I am trying to look at this from a number perspective and not put my emotions into it. Thats not easy. I've been watching the CDC site and the numbers are still relatively low. I've listened to CNN and heard reports from government officials who have said that it hasnt been as bad as what they initially thought. IMO, unless the numbers really start snowballing, I dont think it would be much worse going to WDW then staying home and still having the kids do there normal activities. We live near Sacramento County where has been 2 or 3 confirmed cases, so I am always thinking about it when I am out and about. But, I still havent stopped the kids from doing what they do normally. I thought about this while DD6 was doing gymnastics this morning. Dont want to know the germs getting all over her there. I'm just OCDing about cleaning them, their hands and the things around them. I guess that is all we can do at this point.

Anyway, that being said, I still haven't ruled out the fact that it may get more serious, and we will have to cancel.

I thought I saw on this thread where WDW is allowing for rescheduling. Is that so? Also, if they are allowing rescheduling, has anyone tried to change a flight yet? We have tickets that we book thru WDW for DELTA. We have trip insurance too, but not sure it will cover in this case.

Anyway, I know that I still have time to make my decision, but it has really put a damper on my excitment. I feel bad for those of you who have had to reschedule.