State prepares for pandemic flu

NORFOLK,Va - Imagine the chaos if a pandemic flu, one that threatened the lives of every human being, hit Virginia.

It's the state health department's job to be prepared, so this week they're practicing.

"Every time we practice it, it's to make sure that we can do it efficiently during real world situations," said Hampton Health Department Assistant Planner, Jennifer Lupin.

In Hampton, inmates sat down for immunizations allowing staff to practice mass vaccinations.

Things seem to run smoothly while we were there, but Lupin told WAVY.com they did learn lessons.

"Some of it we can't talk about, it's for public safety," she said.

Emergency workers and hospitals also helped in the drill by reporting the number of sick and dead.

To keep things real in the Norfolk communications hub several staff members were pulled out as if they'd become ill.  So, the staff was shrinking while the to do list expanded on the overhead projector with morbid tasks like what to do with the dead when the morgues got full.

"We'll solve that problem with refrigerated trucks," John Monroe of the Norfolk Health Department told us.

Things most of us don't want to think about, they have to, and they say we will all be better off for it.