In the last day, several colleges have reported suspected cases of swine flu on campuses across the country. At least one case, at the University of Notre Dame, was confirmed by laboratory tests, the Chicago Tribune reported today. Other cases were reported at California State University’s campuses in Long Beach and in San Diego, and at the University of Delaware.

The International Association of Emergency Managers has created a Google map of swine-flu cases, where staff members are tracking reported outbreaks of the virus on college campuses.

Also today, the World Health Organization raised its pandemic alert level to Phase 5, the next-to-highest level, and urged all countries to immediately activate their pandemic-preparedness plans. According to explanatory information on the organization’s Web site, “the declaration of Phase 5 is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short.” —Steven Bushong