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SARS Slows in China, Advances in Taiwan

Posted on: Wednesday, 21 May 2003, 06:00 CDT

By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN

BEIJING (AP) -- With numbers of new SARS cases dropping, China's capital prepared Wednesday to send some students back to class, as gridlock - and an increasing sense of normalcy - returned to Beijing's streets.

Amid the mostly positive news for China, the World Health Organization warned of the possibility of new outbreaks during China's rainy season as overloaded sewage systems overflow, possibly carrying the virus in feces, where it can survive for days.

"We see this as a potential threat, something to beware of," said spokesman Bob Dietz. "SARS could rear up again."

But while numbers of new cases were dropping off elsewhere, Taiwan's outbreak remained severe with another 35 cases announced Wednesday. WHO extended its SARS travel warning to all of Taiwan, not just the capital Taipei, as Taiwanese health officials warned of a spike in cases in the island's south.

China's Health Ministry announced two new deaths from severe acute respiratory syndrome, both in Beijing, and 12 cases of infection - down sharply from the beginning of the month when the nation was reporting 150 new cases a day. The new figures bring the mainland's death toll to 296 and the total number of infections to 5,249, the ministry said.

In Washington, meanwhile, experts testifying before Congress on Wednesday said SARS is likely to reappear this winter, spread from developing parts of the world and may show up in multiple U.S. cities.

"We have not yet begun to see the worst of SARS," predicted Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota.

"If this projection is correct, we have every reason to believe that this disease may show up in multiple U.S. cities," he said.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said the threat from SARS "had been stabilizing," but warned against "excessive optimism and letting down one's guard," the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

"The situation of SARS prevention and treatment remains serious and the fight is still arduous," Wen was quoted as telling a meeting of the State Council, China's cabinet.

Beijing will begin readmitting students to classes on Thursday, beginning with those preparing to take university entrance tests. Classes for younger students are to resume in batches while some schools are to stay closed longer, holding classes by Internet or on television.

Beijing closed its public schools April 24, sending home 1.7 million students amid anti-disease measures that also shut down entertainment outlets and imposed restrictions on travel between provinces.

Beijing's karaoke parlors, cinemas and Internet cafes, all ordered closed by the authorities, remained shuttered Wednesday. Officials haven't said when restrictions might be lifted.

Heavy traffic has returned to Beijing streets left nearly deserted two weeks ago as SARS cases peaked in the capital. Fewer people were wearing face masks and some restaurants and bars began reopening as fears of the outbreak receded and customers returned.

Leaving nothing to chance, Chinese President Hu Jintao was undergoing medical checkups to ensure he is free of SARS when he meets G-8 leaders next month in France.

Hu's anti-SARS preparations before meeting President Bush and other G-8 leaders in the Alpine town of Evian included regular chest X-rays and twice-daily fever checks, Vice Foreign Minister Liu Guchang said at a news conference.

Hu and members of his delegation also have been limiting their visitors under measures aimed at ensuring "there will be no one in our delegation with SARS," Liu said.

Hu, who will be making his first foreign trip as China's leader, is to take part in a development conference held on the sidelines of the June 1-3 meeting. Others at the meeting include the leaders of France, Germany, Japan, Britain, Canada, Italy and Russia.

Also Wednesday, police in the city of Tanghe in Henan province said 39 people are in quarantine after they had contact with a man infected with SARS who is accused of fleeing a hospital there.

The man has been detained on charges of violating quarantine, said a police official in Tanghe who gave only his surname, Cheng. China has threatened long prison terms or possible execution for people who cause death or serious injury by knowingly spreading the virus.

Hong Kong reported two more deaths from SARS - both people in their 80s who had other illnesses - and just one new case. SARS has infected 1,719 people in Hong Kong and killed 255, but the number of new cases has been in the single digits for 18 consecutive days.

Singapore recorded one more death to bring its total to 29 from 206 infected with the virus.

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On the Net:

World Health Organization

Centers for Disease Control

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