Officials still seek animal carriers, call off civet cull
China has announced another "suspected" case of Severe Acute RespiratorySyndrome (SARS), saying a 35-year-old man in the southern city ofGuangzhou was the third patient to be linked to the virus, RFA's Cantoneseand Mandarin services report.
Meanwhile, health officials called off a much-criticized cull of civetcats, which are possible suspects for an animal vector, or carrier, of thedisease to humans.
The latest case was in the same city as the other two cases alreadyreported, and was now at a hospital that specializes in SARS in Guangzhou,health officials said. Authorities have isolated 28 people who came intocontact with him.
The man, who is reportedly in stable condition, will undergo furthertests to confirm if he is indeed infected with the SARS coronavirus.
While the man is thought to have had no contact with wildlife beforebecoming ill, China's second suspected SARS case, a 20-year-old waitressfrom the Tongdeli restaurant in Guangzhou, may have come into contact withthe weasel-like civet cats, which were on the menu at her workplace.
On Monday afternoon, a World Health Organization (WHO) team was analyzingsamples taken from the apartment complex where the recovered patientlives, the Tongdeli restaurant, and a market where wild animals had beensold before an anti-SARS crackdown on their trade.
A WHO veterinary expert was also working with agricultural officials,while another WHO scientist was helping health authorities organize data,WHO spokesman Bob Dietz told reporters in Beijing.
Dietz said that while the agency was urging caution, "we still do not seea significant public health threat.'' He said a few cases in a countrywith a population of 1.3 billion should not be cause for alarm.
Amidst the new SARS outbreaks, the tourism trade has seen a decrease in recent weeks.
�In the area of tourism, tours from Hong Kong to Guangdong have reportedlybeen affected due to tourists� fears. The rate of Hong Kong tour agencies sendingtour groups to Guangdong has been down 30%,� Hong Kong Economic Journal deputy editor-in-chief Chen Jinxiang told RFA�s Mandarin service.
�While tourism has decreased in Hong Kong, there has not yet been a decrease in Guangdong. This is because of the numerous warnings issued andstrengthened prevention measures taken there, especially in terms of food inmarkets and crowds in public places. However, I believe the SARS impact will be more visible in Guangdong during the upcoming Chinese New Year period,� Chen said.
China suspects wild animals�particularly the civet cat, a striped relativeof the mongoose�of spreading SARS to humans, though no definitive proofhas been found. Guangdong Province has forbidden restaurants from servingcivet cats and carried out a mass slaughter of the animals last week.
SARS�which infected 5,327 people in China nationwide from November 2002 toJune 2003 and killed 349�re-emerged this season in a 32-year-oldtelevision producer, whose diagnosis was confirmed earlier this month. Heleft the hospital last week and was pronounced recovered.#####