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Swine flu confirmed in Lackawanna County

The first confirmed case of swine flu has been confirmed in Lackawanna County, the state Department of Health reported on its Web site Tuesday afternoon.

Lackawanna joins 17 other counties in the state, including Luzerne, with confirmed cases. Over the weekend a "probable" case was reported in Lackawanna County. The sample was sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta and it tested positive for the  A/H1N1strain of Influenza commonly known as swine flu.

Two confirmed cases have been reported in Luzerne County, including a Holy Redemer High School student.

The names, ages, sex, and hometowns of those who have tested positive for the virus are not being released by the state because of privacy issues, according to department of health spokeswoman Stacy Kriedeman.

As of Tuesday afternoon, there have been 58 confirmed cases in Pennsylvania and more than 5,100 cases and six deaths nationwide.