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Saturday, March 29, 2003Italian Dr. Carlo Urbani, 46, a World Health Organization expert on communicable diseases, became infected while working in Vietnam, where he diagnosed an American businessman hospitalized in Hanoi, Vietnam, the U.N. agency said. The businessman later died. Forty-six year olds usually don't die from complications of a cold or the flu. Make no mistake, this is a more deadly and more contagious virus than we've become accustomed to. And it certainly has the citizens of Hong Kong spooked: Today, thousands of Hong Kong residents were wearing surgical masks around town, but many were not going around at all, slowing down an already feeble economy. Taxi stands where people normally line up during rush hour had few customers in sight. Schools were closed, and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp., the biggest lender in town, shut part of a floor in its main office today because a worker became sick. The Bank of China also closed a branch today for a thorough cleaning after a staff member fell ill. Several other companies have done the same. Anti-war protesters in Hong Kong cancelled a peace rally. Some airplane crews on Cathay Pacific Airways, Hong Kong's largest airline, were wearing masks, and spokeswoman Maria Yu said some flights might be cut. Other places are reacting, too: Nations across Asia are fighting to contain the illness. Singapore, which has had two deaths, nearly doubled the number of people quarantined to more than 1,500 on Friday. Australia advised its citizens today to reconsider traveling to Hong Kong, Singapore, China and Vietnam - the four places in Asia that have suffered SARS deaths - if they were worried about the disease. Taiwan said today its SARS cases had risen from 10 to 12. Officials handed out 100,000 free surgical masks to travelers and employees at its main international airport, which was being disinfected. ...In Toronto, health officials declared an emergency and said Friday that international travelers flying out of the city will be screened for SARS symptoms. The U.S. State Department has urged American travelers to watch for symptoms of the disease, including a fever above 100.4 degrees and signs of respiratory illness such as cough or shortness of breath. posted by Sydney on 3/29/2003 11:18:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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