Contact: Priscilla Knight, 703-392-1580, pknight@novec.com
FARIFAX, Va. -- Business leaders gathered in Fairfax County on Friday to discuss taking a proactive approach to the potential crisis of a bird flu pandemic.
Officials said more than 600,000 people work in Fairfax County every day. They also project that 40 percent of the workforce could be absent if a bird flu pandemic hit the United States.
Fairfax County is home to international firms, Fortune 500 companies and tech giants. County officials in business, medicine and government said they want those employers to be prepared for the worst.
"What's the plan if 25 or 30 percent of your workforce is out, effectively out sick for prolonged periods of time because a pandemic goes in waves and can last 12 to 18 months?" questioned Gerry Connolly, Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. "What will happen if there's no electricity, no water? What are the schools going to do? Everyone has to do their own planning. Businesses have to plan. Families have plan. The government has to plan," said Merni Fitzgerald, director of Public Affairs for Fairfax County.
Employers were able to question panelists from hospitals, utilities and schools, while also comparing their own existing disaster plans.
"Pulling together as much information as you can is important. And this is one of those avenues to get more information and to share with other companies what they're doing, pick the best practices and pull together your own plan," said Regina Mowad an employer representative.
County Health Director, Dr. Gloria Addo-Ayensu, said she is encouraged to see businesses taking a proactive approach.
"A pandemic is unique in that, unlike other emergencies, we don't actually have time to plan, so we want people to take advantage of the plan, of the time, to maximize their planning efforts," she said.
The Fairfax County School system is one of the largest in the country, with 165,000 students. School officials said they are prepared for a pandemic and are urging parents not to keep their children at home if a health crisis does break out.
