World News: Mexico Swine Flu Raises Fears Of A Global Pandemic

Mexico's deadly swine flu outbreak is raising fears that the virulent disease could spread and create a global pandemic.

Spain became the first country outside North America to report its first case and was soon followed by two confirmed cases in Scotland on Monday. Canada and certain states in the U.S are the other areas where cases of the disease have been confirmed.

The suspected death toll from swine flu in Mexico had increased to 149 since Monday. The Mexican Health Ministry had reported that 20 cases are confirmed as swine flu, according to the BBC News .

The swine flu scare has disrupted travel plans to Mexico by people around the world. In Asia, health authorities have taken steps to screen in-coming passengers at airports.

The BBC News website reported that Mexico's Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said nearly 2,000 people had been hospitalised since the first case of swine flu was reported on April 13.

What is swine flu?

Swine flu is a respiratory disease which could be spread through coughing and sneezing. Symptoms mimic those of normal influenza.

Susan Boyle - An Unlikely Singing Sensation

A Star Is Born  She's the woman who made the world stop and listen. Yes, Susan Boyle is an unlikely singing sensation. The 47-year-old singer from Scotland has gained millions of admirers since she wowed judges on Britain's Got Talent. She wooed millions of broadcast and online viewers with her rendition of "I Dreamed A Dream" from the musical Les Miserables.

Boyle has gone from karaoke and her church choir to global fame and an invitation to the Oprah Winfrey show. Her performance – which surprised the show’s live audience, judges, and subsequently the world – has led to appearances by Boyle on other American television programs like Good Morning America and The Early Show.

The YouTube video of Boyle's performance hit an all-time high. It just went viral. It is estimated that Boyle's performance was witnessed more than 47 million times by viewers around the world, according to Visible Measures, which tracks online video usage.

If you go to YouTube you will be disappointed because they have disabled the embedded code of the video that shows her performing on Britain's Got Talent.

People were ecstatic over her singing, describing her as a singing angel who has a "God-given gift". One viewer commented: "We just heard Susan for the first time - we are just blown away by your angelic voice!"

Despite her new-found fame, Boyle told CNN's American Morning on Friday: "I wouldn't want to change myself too much because that would really make things a bit false. I want to receive people as the real me, a real person."

Eddie Anderson on the Five Thirty Show (STV) on the Susan Boyle Sensation:



> Video: The Susan Boyle Story