Dayton Daily News from Dayton, Ohio • 3

WWW.DAYT0NDAILYNEWS.COM Friday, May 1, 2009 I Page A3 Fly C(D mm bud may uasc awim PBS 16, i ri. if I 14 pull plug on analog TV stations' switch to digital went into effect today. By Terry Morris Staff Writer DAYTON Local public television stations WPTD and WPTO aren't waiting for the June 12 national switch from analog to digital. They made the change at 1 a.m. today, May 1.

David Fogarty, president and general manager of ThinkTV16 and 14, said there's a national trend for PBS stations to transition early, but cost was also a factor. "Analog operation requires significant additional expense," he said. Viewers with television sets that receive broadcast signals using "rabbit ears" or an antenna must install a digital converter box on each set to continue receiving ThinkTV programs. Information about the digital transition are available online at thinktv.org. The move continues a process that began May 1, 2003, when Channel 16 introduced its multicast digital program services.

A year later, Channel 14's digital lineup went on the air. Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2377 or tmorrisDayton DailyNews.com. Health officials prepare for an extended outbreak of the virus. By Tom Beyerlein and James Cummings Staff Writers The greater Dayton area remained free of confirmed cases of swine flu Thursday, April 30, but health officials are settling in for what may become a long pandemic. Public health officials in Montgomery, Warren, Greene, Miami, Darke and Shelby counties reported no new suspected cases.

According to the Ohio-Department of Health, there has been one con-' firmed case, in Lorain County, four probable cases and 59 suspected cases. The probable cases are from Franklin County, which has two, Holmes and Portage counties. In Euclid, swine flu worries prompted a Catholic school northeast of Cleveland to shut its doors until Monday. St. Felici-tas School called off classes Thursday and today, May 1, after a student's mother reported that her doctor diagnosed her with swine flu, Principal Martha Dodd said.

That case has not been confirmed by state health officials. Officials of Public Health Dayton and Montgomery County have sent six biological samples from swabs to the state health department for testing. One result has been returned and it was negative for swine flu, The incident management team of the Public Health Dayton and Montgomery County meets Thursday, April 30, in the office's operational center in downtown Dayton to discuss developments in the swine flu outbreak, staff photo by Chris Stewart i lives." "Keep current on the influenza situation, because it is changing rapidly." Information is available at www.phdmc.org, with links to other public health sites. "People need to take the simple precautions that they normally take with regard to seasonal flu. Wash your hands, cover your coughs and sneezes.

If you're sick, stay home." Maintain a two-week supply of nonperishable food, water, prescription and over-the-counter medication and other necessities in the event health officials request that infected people remain in their homes. Health department officials have been meeting ing at a time when many local residents are feeling sick from upper respiratory ailments, seasonal flu and tree allergies. A high fever about 102 degrees is an indicator that people should see a doctor to be checked for swine flu and possibly treated with antiviral drugs. Flu vaccines aren't effective in preventing swine flu. Gross said the public should be confident that health officials are working to manage any outbreak.

)) U.S. swine flu cases top 100, but most recovering, officials say Articles on A7 twice daily on the outbreak. They have implemented a response plan prepared several years ago. In Warren County, Health Commissioner Duane Stansbury said his department is "in a holding pattern" while waiting for test results on a Springboro High School student whose physician father had her screened for swine flu. Stansbury said that three weeks ago, the girl, who was tested at Kettering Medical Center, had traveled to Mexico where the flu strain originated.

She recently became ill, but Stansbury said the chances she has swine flu are low. Wharton said the swine flu outbreak is happen FINAL CLEA HURRY IN FOR THE BEST SELECTION! 0 spokesman Bill Wharton said. Health Commissioner Jim Gross said concerns about swine flu could go on for months, and the numbers of confirmed cases could ebb and flow. Historically, outbreaks of flu strains have come in waves. "It would not surprise me at all if we were in this for an extended period of time," he said.

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