The Seattle-King County Public Health Department is using a comic book to help warn about the danger of pandemic flu.

David Lasky, a Seattle comics artist with a personal connection to the great influenza pandemic of 1918, has teamed with health officials on “No Ordinary Flu.” The comic book especially tries to reach immigrants and young people with information about the pandemic threat.

The comic book, available free through the Health Department (orders can be placed online at www.metrokc.gov/health/pandemicflu), follows the fictional account of a young World War I veteran and his family as their world is transformed overnight by the arrival of the deadly flu virus. It also describes the current threat and how to be prepared if an outbreak occurs.

Lasky’s great-grandmother died during the 1918 pandemic that killed more than 675,000 Americans. Her grieving husband left three of his children to be raised in an orphanage, including Lasky’s grandmother.

“The 1918 pandemic left such a mark on my family, but until this project, I never really knew much about the pandemic itself,” said Lasky. “I was completely surprised to learn how deadly it was and how quickly it had spread.”

A pandemic flu is a new virus that could be much more serious than a typical flu. Unlike normal, seasonal strains of flu, humans would have no or little natural resistance to a pandemic.

Officials have said that in King County, a severe pandemic flu could make 540,000 people ill, nearly 60,000 would need hospitalization, and 11,500 could die in the first six weeks of an outbreak.

“A severe pandemic would affect the lives of everyone in our community,” said Dr. David Fleming, director of the Health Department. “Everyone needs to prepare for the health and economic impacts of a pandemic, so we’re delivering the message in a way that reaches diverse communities.”

Public-health educators chose the comic book format because comics are widely read by people of all ages in parts of Latin America and Asia. The book is in 11 languages.

The project is paid for by the National Association of County and City Health Officers.