EMERGENCY planners have assured people that the county is prepared for a swine flu pandemic following news of Lincolnshire's first victim.

The female swine flu sufferer – who caught the H1N1 in the US – has been treated with Tamiflu.

And anyone who has spent more than an hour with her in the past week has also been given anti-viral drugs.

Head of emergency planning for Lincolnshire, David Powell, said that NHS Lincolnshire, the Health Protection Agency and Lincolnshire County Council had made detailed plans which included securing enough Tamiflu to control an H1N1 outbreak.

"Nothing in particular has changed because we have our first confirmed case. We have very small numbers in the UK and just because we have got the first case in the county does not mean it will spread," he said.

Spokesman for the Health Protection Agency, Charlotte Farrar, said it was routine procedure to give anti-viral drugs to anyone who has been exposed to a swine flu sufferer for longer than one hour and within a distance of one metre during the previous seven days – the virus's incubation period.

"When we have a confirmed case we track down all the people in close contact with the victim and give them anti-virals," she said.

"Any presenting flu symptoms are swabbed and tested for the virus. Although I can confirm the case is associated with the United States, I'm unable to provide details on the area visited."

The Lincolnshire representative for the British Medical Association, agreed that it was unlikely that dozens of county people would contract swine flu following news of its first confirmed case.

However, he said by observing patterns in other parts of the country it was likely that a couple of people who had been in contact with Lincolnshire's first sufferer could fall victim to the virus.

"It would not surprise me at all if we had a few more cases," said the BMA spokesman.

"The other outbreaks do not seem to be travelling very far. Either Tamiflu is good protection against the virus or it is not as fast spreading as it was originally thought to be."

NHS Lincolnshire said the best way to prevent the spread of swine flu was to follow good hygiene practices by washing hands and catching sneezes in a tissue.