- BEIJING (Reuters) - Three
suspected cases of SARS in the Chinese capital, Beijing, have now been
confirmed, taking the number of victims of the latest outbreak to nine,
the Health Ministry said on Tuesday.
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- All three newly confirmed cases of the highly contagious
deadly flu-like SARS were linked to one viral disease laboratory in Beijing,
it said on its Web site www.moh.gov.cn.
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- Only one of the nine has died. Hundreds of people have
been isolated for observation in the past few weeks, but hundreds of millions
of travelers have been taking planes and trains undeterred for the week-long
May Day holiday that ends on May 7.
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- Nearly 800 people died of the potentially fatal illness
worldwide after Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome emerged in southern China
in late 2002.
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- Six of the confirmed SARS patients were in stable condition
in Beijing's Ditan hospital while a seventh confirmed patient in the capital
was expected to be released from hospital after recording a normal temperature
for 18 consecutive days, it said.
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- Another victim from eastern Anhui province was expected
to be discharged from a local hospital soon, the ministry said.
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- No new suspected SARS cases had been reported, it said.
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- The World Health Organization has said it believes all
the current SARS cases are linked to the Chinese National Institute of
Virology that has engaged in research involving the SARS coronavirus.
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- That appears to be part of the reason the Chinese public
appears unconcerned.
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- Mention of SARS has been noticeably lacking in Chinese
media in recent days despite temperature checks at airports and railway
stations for travelers with a fever, a symptom of SARS.
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- Unlike last year's outbreak, China is believed to have
a system in place to cut the chain of transmission.
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- However, fears of a SARS comeback have rippled through
Hong Kong.
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- A tourism official there warned this week that the recent
return of SARS to mainland China could slow a recent recovery in visitor
levels to the city.
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