UDel Awaits Sick Students' Test Results

NEWARK, Del. - The deadly swine flu outbreak is now in 10 U.S. states with probable cases in Delaware and New Jersey, as well.

Live: Swine Flu News Tracker

On Wednesday morning, the Department of Homeland Security announced the number of confirmed cases had risen to 91.

Also, the U.S. reported its first death in the outbreak. A 23-month-old boy from Mexico died in Texas.

And The Daily Journal in Cumberland County is reporting that the five probable cases in the Garden State are within that South Jersey county. The state health department plans to hold a press briefing Wednesday afternoon.

On Wednesday morning, President Barack Obama expressed sympathy to the families impacted. He also urged people to wash their hands and stay home from work or school if sick.

"I would also urge health agencies in local communities to be vigilant about identifying suspected cases of this virus in your areas and reporting them to the appropriate state and federal authorities in a timely way. We need your assistance," Obama said.

The president told parents they may see their children's schools shut down temporarily if swine flu spreads to them, and that could also apply to colleges if the situation gets worse.

University of Delaware leadership is keeping the Newark campus open and classes going as officials await confirmation on whether the four sickened students have swine flu.

For the time being, only some large gatherings may be postponed.

Explaining the decision to stay open, President Patrick T. Harker said, "Keeping the university open, right now, actually makes it easier to test and treat students. As students disperse throughout their communities, it would be much more difficult for us to offer the kind of screening programs we've put in place."

Officials said the four UDel students did not know each other. Two live on campus, and two live off campus. Only one has returned home, so three remain in Newark.

An official at nearby Christiana Hospital said they have seen no increase in people with flu-like symptoms in its emergency room.

An armed university police officer wearing a facemask and blue rubber gloves while guarding the doors of a campus building really unsettled some students coming in to talk about their flu-like symptoms or fears of catching them.

"Everyone was kind of freaking out a little bit," one student told Fox 29 News Wednesday morning.

Delaware authorities are straddling the thin line between raising awareness and raising alarm.

"I actually kind of stopped before and I looked at him, and I was like, 'Um, excuse me, what's going on?' like before I got close to him. And he said, 'Oh, it's just to get tested,'" the female student said.

A male student said, "I've been feeling a little bit sick, so I came to get checked out and make sure everything was OK."

The university put out a health alert on its Web site, text-messaged and e-mailed all 20,000 students that four of their classmates have probable cases of swine flu. That startled some students, but most seemed unafraid as they came back to classes Wednesday.

"I'm sure some a couple people are going to be panicky, but everybody else will probably be OK," one female student said.

"I'm not too worried about it right now," a male student said.

"They've handled it pretty well so far with all the test messages and alerts so, so far so good. Hopefully, it's going to be under control and doesn't spread too far," another male student said.

Gov. Jack Markell said during a Wednesday morning news conference that they don't expect to get test results back until Thursday at the earliest. He talked about the state's response to handle the situation.

Markell said they have "deployed 31 nurses and more than 50 other health professionals or staff to the University of Delaware to assess the situation and to determine a protocol for a path forward."

Dr, Paul Silverman, of the Division of Public Health, said, "We have interviewed each of the four student's that we're talking about. We have reviewed their specific situations. We've identified their housing situation, who their roommates are and other close contacts."

Delaware's Devision of Public Health has activated a hotline for swine flu questions. It's a toll-free number, 866-408-1899, and they'll take calls until 5:30 p.m.

PHL Passenger Didn't Have Swine Flu

Meanwhile, tests showed Tuesday that an airline passenger put in isolation in Philadelphia did not have swine flu.

The woman was rushed to Methodist Hospital in South Philadelphia Monday after complaining of flu like symptoms. She was traveling from Cancun back to Canada with a connecting flight at PHL. All tests for the virus came back negative.

Philadelphia health officials said they're prepared if any cases of swine flu do show up here.

Over a hundred passengers were trapped on the tarmac for over an hour Tuesday afternoon at Baltimore-Washington International Airport in Maryland.

Two men traveling on an AirTran flight from Cancun showed symptoms of nausea and fever.

Health officials examined them when the plane landed and found it was a false alarm -- they'd simply had too much to drink.