Virus deaths mount worldwide

Four more people, including three in Hong Kong and one in Canada, have died of the pneumonia virus that has killed more than 80 people worldwide.

Four more people, including three in Hong Kong and one in Canada, have died of the pneumonia virus that has killed more than 80 people worldwide.The Hong Kong authorities reported 39 new infections of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) on Saturday – bringing the total number of cases there to 800. At least 74 people have contracted the illness in Canada – the worst-affected country outside Asia. China has promised to release more information on the pneumonia virus which emerged in the southern Guangdong province last November, before spreading to Hong Kong and around the world in March. Slow response The latest death in Canada occurred in Ontario province, but authorities there gave no further details. Officials in Ontario say a ninth person is suspected to have died from the illness, but a positive post-mortem diagnosis has not yet been made. China, for its part, has come under fire for failing to report early and openly on the disease. Deputy Prime Minister Wu Yi called for “the immediate establishment of a national medical emergency mechanism, with emphasis placed on a public health information and an early warning reporting mechanism”. Ms Wu did not make clear when the measures would be taken. However, her comments follow Friday’s unprecedented apology by Li Liming, director of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), who said there had not been “enough close co-operation with the media”. A team from the World Health Organization (WHO) visiting the province has urged Chinese authorities to re-examine samples taken from victims killed by the virus. They want to see whether the illness might involve multiple viruses or bacteria. WHO officials have told the BBC they hope to make a breakthrough on the virus in “weeks rather than months”. Still spreading More than half of the people killed by SARS across the world are from China. More than 2,000 people have been infected with the virus across the world. In the United States, President George W Bush has issued an executive order allowing the forced quarantine of patients with Sars if deemed necessary by the health secretary. The WHO believes the epidemic Guangdong appears to be under control while an outbreak in Singapore could be almost over. But it is still spreading with Malaysia reporting on Saturday the first suspected death related to the disease. In Hong Kong, which is next to Guangdong, health officials say the rate of increase in cases has been leveling off – but there were three more deaths on Saturday. But correspondents say Hong Kong remained concerned about further spread because of the important Ching Ming festival on Saturday, when thousands of residents traditionally go to southern China to visit ancestors’ graves. (Source: BBC Online)