Image by nicholas macgowan via Flickr06/18/2009 | 10:38 AM
BEIJING — Dozens of American high school students were quarantined in central China after some were diagnosed with swine flu, the government said. In New Zealand, the Roman Catholic Church placed restrictions on communion to stop the spread of the virus.
A group of 42 American high school students and teachers was quarantined last Thursday in Yichang city in central Hubei province, China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement Wednesday.
Seven people in the group, from the private Pacific Ridge School in Carlsbad, California, were hospitalized in stable condition after testing positive for swine flu, said a man who answered the phone at the Yichang command center for swine flu.
The students, who left for China on June 2, visited Beijing and Xi'an and embarked on a river cruise to the Three Gorges Dam when a handful of students and one teacher started feeling sick. When the boat docked, they were taken to a nearby hospital.
The total number of cases on the mainland rose to 264, but no deaths have occurred, the Health Ministry said.
China plans to conduct regular health checks at schools, nurseries, homes for the aged and construction sites in the event of a swine flu outbreak at the community level, according to a new work plan released Wednesday. Further steps in a worsening outbreak include shutting schools, nurseries and entertainment venues and canceling large gatherings.
The virus continued to spread across the region. In New Zealand, the Roman Catholic Church imposed a ban on priests placing communion wafers on the tongues of worshippers and on the sharing of communion wine. It also asked parishioners to avoid bodily contact at services, including shaking hands. The country reported 28 new cases of swine flu Wednesday, bringing its total to 127.
Hong Kong reported 54 more cases, bringing its total to 172. The new cases included 26 students at the Australian International School, which suspended classes for two weeks Tuesday.
In Malaysia, the Health Ministry said it detected the country's first domestic transmission of swine flu, bringing the total number of cases to 23.
In the Philippines, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the number of cases reached 311.
Australia said it would begin using a new, more moderate swine flu response plan starting Wednesday, with health officials saying the virus was not as severe as initially feared.
Health Minister Nicola Roxon said the new plan focuses less on trying to keep infected people out of Australia and more on identifying and treating those hit hardest by the virus.
Although most of the more than 1,200 cases in Australia have been mild, three people are currently hospitalized in intensive care, Roxon said.
Thailand's Public Health Ministry confirmed 95 new cases, bringing the country's total to 405.
In Singapore, the Health Ministry said the risk of swine flu spreading in the city-state has increased, as people went shopping or to work after arriving from abroad with the virus. It has reported 49 cases.
The World Health Organization has warned countries to prepare for a second wave of infections once their outbreaks have peaked, saying the virus could mutate. - AP
From GMANews.tv; see the source article here.
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