The Hindu : SARS 'remains severe' in Beijing, says Mayor

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, May 01, 2003

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International

SARS 'remains severe' in Beijing, says Mayor

BEIJING april 30. Beijing's SARS outbreak ``remains severe'' and hospitals handling the disease don't have enough beds for all suspected cases, the city's new Mayor said on Wednesday.

The Mayor, Wang Qishan, acknowleged residents were frightened and that there had been some panic. But he denied speculation that the Chinese capital would be sealed off, saying enough precautions were in place. ``I think the coming week will be of critical importance in monitoring the trend of development of this disease,'' Mr. Wang said at a news conference. He called for calm and said ``the panic and fear factor among the general public is a really big issue for us.''

The Health Ministry reported nine new fatalities in Beijing and two elsewhere, raising the capital's death toll to 75 and the total for the mainland to 159. The Ministry said there were 101 new infections in Beijing, raising its total to 1,448.

``The situation in Beijing remains severe for SARS prevention and treatment. Infections have not yet been cut off. Numbers of confirmed and suspected SARS cases remain high,'' Mr. Wang said in a written statement. ``Due to a shortage of berths at designated hospitals, not all suspected SARS patients can be hospitalized there in a timely manner.''

The city has designated 21 hospitals to handle SARS cases, Mr. Wang's statement said. It didn't say how the suspected cases that weren't hospitalised were being handled.

A new 1,000-bed SARS facility north of Beijing was to receive its first 195 patients on Wednesday, he said. The official Xinhua News Agency said the facility — built in eight days by an army of 7,000 construction workers — would be staffed by 813 military medical personnel.

The rising number of infections has prompted urgent steps to stem the spread of the virus. The Beijing Government has closed public schools and ordered cinemas and other entertainment sites to close. Thousands of people have been quarantined, companies have closed temporarily and many families are staying at home.

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SARS 'remains severe' in Beijing, says Mayor