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LISA MULLINS: I'm Lisa Mullins, and this is The World. The global spread of swine flu showed no sign of slowing today. At least 9 countries have now been affected. There are confirmed cases in 11 US states. Mexico remains by far the hardest hit country. We're going to hear from people living there in just a few minutes. But first, we look at the evolving situation here in the US, which reported its first fatality today. The World's Matthew Bell begins our coverage.

MATTHEW BELL: The first confirmed death in the United States from the H1N1 swine flu virus was announced this morning. The victim was a Mexican boy, just under two years old. Relatives flew him from Mexico City to Texas for medical treatment earlier this month, and he died on Monday in Houston. Dr. David Persse is a spokesman for the Houston Health Department.

DAVID PERSSE: We are very saddened this morning to follow up on the news that was released this morning by the Centers for Disease Control that there has been a death of a child here in Houston. It's important for everyone to know that while the death occurred here in Houston, this unfortunate child was not a native Houstonian. This child is a resident of Mexico who traveled to Brownsville, Texas to visit family.

BELL: Details about the identity of the boy and his family were not given for reasons of medical privacy. But officials say the toddler had other unspecified health issues, that he would not have been contagious during his flight into the US, and, they say, relatives who were in contact with the boy are healthy. President Obama this morning offered his thoughts and prayers to the victim's family. He said the flu outbreak is a serious situation that deserves the utmost precautions.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Every American should know that the federal government is prepared to do whatever is necessary to control the impact of this virus, but there are also steps that Americans can take individually. They are the same steps that you would take to prevent any other flu. Keep your hands washed. Cover your mouth when you cough. Stay home from work if you are sick. Keep your children home from school if they are sick.

BELL: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced its latest numbers on the outbreak in the US. The vast majority of infected people here have experienced relatively mild symptoms. New York had the most confirmed cases of the swine flu virus with 51. There were 16 in Texas, 14 in California, 3 in Maine, 2 in Kansas, and 2 in Massachusetts. Indiana, Ohio, Arizona, Nevada, and Michigan all had 1 case each. The CDC's acting Director, Richard Besser, said things are changing very quickly.

RICHARD BESSER: These numbers are almost out-of-date by the time I say them, given the activities going on around the country to look for cases and to investigate them.

BELL: Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano, answered questions about the flu outbreak on Capitol Hill today, and she repeated something Barack Obama said yesterday – that the swine flu is cause for concern, but not cause for alarm.

JANET NAPOLITANO: There is a lot we don't yet know about this outbreak, but we have been preparing as if we are facing a true pandemic. Even though we don't know the ultimate scope of what will occur. We also have been preparing with the understanding that this will be a marathon and not a sprint. We are going to be at this for a while.

BELL: On the international level, World Health Organization officials are meeting in Geneva to discuss the possibility of raising the alert level for the flu outbreak. WHO official, Keiji Fukuda, said the swine influenza virus appears to be jumping from person-to-person in a number of different countries.

KEIJI FUKUDA: When we take that information and we assess the overall situation, it suggests that as the outbreak evolves, we are moving closer to phase 5. So we are moving closer to that, but I don't think we are quite there yet.

BELL: A phase 5 alert is one level below that of a full-blown “level 6” global pandemic. But Fukuda said there are still big unknowns about the H1N1 virus. And one of the biggest is this: what percentage of those who contract this flu strain will come down with mild symptoms? And what percentage will end up with severe symptoms? That's something health officials are working hard to figure out. For The World, I'm Matthew Bell.

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