A day before Hong Kong health authorities reported the city’s first person-to-person transmission of the virus, the WHO has announced that it is about to declare swine flu a pandemic. This entails that it has totally gone global on us, resulting in a lift to phase 6 (the highest) on the risk level scale. Swine flu is thus the first flu pandemic in over 40 years.

So far the piggy cough has infected 26,563 people in 73 countries and caused 140 deaths. Most cases have been in North America, but Australia also has seen a sharp increase in recent days (more than 1200 infections). There have been more than 45 confirmed cases of human swine flu in the Big Lychee, not counting the potentially infected renegades on the run. With a population of approximately 7 million, that means one infection per 150.000 Hong Kongers already. Gentlemen, place your wagers.