| THIS IS WHAT I MEAN. Important Notice: Jang Group of Newspapers web site can be accessed only by using http://www.jang.com.pk and http://www.jang-group.com China closes down 566 hotels, other venues Measures to prevent SARS from spreading SHANGHAI: Authorities in China's former capital Nanjing have shut 566 hotels, saunas, hair salons and Internet cafes in a bid to prevent SARS from spreading, state press and officials said Monday. The city has already quarantined 10,000 people. "We have implemented the measure in an attempt to prevent Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome from spreading," said an official from the Nanjing Tourism Administration Bureau who refused to be named. Another official surnamed Zhen added that people coming from Beijing, Guangdong, Shanxi and Inner Mongolia and other parts of the country severely affected by the pneumonia-like respiratory illness will be quarantined for 15 days. The province of Jiangsu, of which Nanjing is the capital, has confirmed only seven SARS case as well as 20 suspected infections, with the measures taken strictly precautionary, the China News Service said. The drastic action has raised concerns that the eastern city of 6.4 million people, which lies 290 kilometers (179 miles) northwest of China's major city Shanghai, could be under-reporting its SARS cases. A mass quarantine of 10,000 people last week came after a Chinese official travelling from Beijing to Nanjing reportedly ignored orders to register with local authorities and isolate himself for 10 days. Meanwhile, Health experts set out for China's poor rural hinterlands Monday in an attempt to check the spread of SARS as 21 new deaths from the virus were reported in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. World Health Organization teams were fanning out across China in hopes of better understanding the spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome as fears rose the situation in the world's most populous nation could be much worse than previously admitted, a WHO official said. Up until now the WHO's focus has been on Beijing and the source of the outbreak in southern Guangdong province, two areas which have seen the largest number of cases. China reported 12 new SARS deaths and 75 new cases Monday, mostly in the capital, as fatalities leap back into double digits after several days of decline. Beijing authorities also announced thousands more residents had been placed under quarantine. The Beijing foreign affairs office said more than 23,000 people had been quarantined in the Chinese capital, an increase of more than 4,000 from the previous day. But the focus of attention is shifting increasingly to the countryside where primitive medical facilities and poor information are expected to hamper the battle to keep SARS from devastating the countryside. WHO officials said it was unknown why neighbouring provinces were reporting only a small number of cases, especially given the large flow of migrant workers. "That's why the teams are going out there because they don't know what's going on. If there is missing data, it (the real situation) may be much worse," WHO spokeswoman Mangai Balasegaram told AFP. Chinese officials and health experts have expressed hope that the number of cases will taper off following May, citing as an example Guangdong, which saw caseloads peak and then drop in the fourth month of its epidemic in February. ================================================ Previous World News Next The News International, Pakistan Update | Top Stories| Business | Karachi | Islamabad | Opinion Sports | Editorial | Cartoon | National | Lahore | Stocks | Newspost |
6 SARS Cases in Shanghai