Flight passengers in contact with influenza A/H1N1 to be out of quarantine on Thursday

BEIJING, May 6 (Xinhua) -- Passengers quarantined in
the Chinese mainland who took the same flight with a Mexican national later
diagnosed with influenza A/H1N1 in Hong Kong will be out of quarantine on
Thursday if they display no flu-like symptoms, China's Ministry of Health said
Wednesday.

The passengers, scattered in 18 provinces, autonomous regions
and municipalities on the Chinese mainland, would be free to go by 6 a.m.
Thursday, after local health authorities confirm they show no fever, acute
respiratory symptoms, or other signs of influenza A/H1N1 infection.

Those who show flu-like symptoms will be isolated at
designated health institutions and will receive medical treatment there, the
ministry said. People in close contact with them will also be quarantined.

None of the passengers had yet showed any flu-like
symptoms as of Monday, the health ministry said on Tuesday.

A flight crew of 13 Mexicans and 166 passengers who
remained in the Chinese mainland were put into a seven-day quarantine on May
1after taking Thursday's Mexican flight Aeromexico 098 from Mexico City to
Shanghai.

The quarantine came after a 25-year-old male Mexican
who took the same flight was confirmed on Friday in Hong Kong to be infected
with influenza A/H1N1.

On Tuesday, a Mexican chartered plane arrived at the
Shanghai Pudong International Airport on Tuesday to pick up the quarantined
Mexicans.

Andres Pena, vice consul-general of Mexico in
Shanghai, said those who got on the plane included 43 crew and passengers on
board the AM098 and 34 others, who worked and lived in China but were not under
quarantine. Six Mexican nationals volunteered to stay in the city.

People in contact with A/H1N1 "well treated" in quarantine, say Chinese officials

BEIJING, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Those put into quarantine by Chinese authorities after allegedly coming into close contact with the A/H1N1 virus had been well treated and showed no flu symptoms as of Monday noon in Beijing, Shanghai and Liaoning Province, local officials said Monday afternoon.

The 20 quarantined in Beijing including 10 Mexicans, had been well served under medical observation, said Deng Xiaohong, deputy director of Beijing Municipal Health Bureau.

Chen said all these people had close contact with A/H1N1 flu virus and had been quarantined over the weekend.

They had been put in the best rooms and flowers and fruits had been sent to their rooms every day, Deng said.

Food was served in their rooms and the menus had been made in both Chinese and English. Western-style chefs had been sent for the Mexicans, Deng said.

The building's air-conditioning had been turned off to avoid the possibility of the virus spreading while electric fans had been offered as the temperature in Beijing is rising, she said.

"A Mexican family with five members were transferred to a suite of rooms, including a double bed for the couple," Deng said. A Mexican child had been given gifts including a Barbie doll and puzzles. Computers and DVD players with English systems had been offered.

"The Mexicans said they were grateful for our work. They said they feel it was understandable to be quarantined as it was a necessary method to avoid the spread of virus." Deng said.

In Shanghai, the 69 people aboard the same flight with a Mexican A/H1N1 patient had been quarantined in a four-star hotel with a sea view, said Chen Xiaoling, director of the Center of Disease Control in Nanhui District, Shanghai.

The quarantined, including 13 flight crew, 28 Mexican and 28 Chinese passengers, were all quarantined separately, except for a Mexican couple on honeymoon, Chen said.

Two doctors, three nurses and some other medical workers had been sent to the hotel, Chen told Xinhua on Monday afternoon.

All the quarantined receive medical examinations twice a day. They can contact people outside, watch television, listen to music, read books or surf the Internet, she said.

In Liaoning Province in northeast China, a further two people who had taken the same flight, Thursday's Aeromexico 098 from Mexico City to Shanghai, with the Mexican patient, had been quarantined "with good living conditions," said Wang Tianyu, assistant director of Liaoning Provincial Health Department. In addition, five of their family members had also been quarantined.

The two are colleagues and were sent to Mexico on April 16 by their company on business, Wang said.

"A nutritious and delicious diet had been offered for them every day," Wang said.

None of the passengers quarantined had shown flu symptoms as of Sunday noon, China's health ministry said.

There were 176 people and 13 crew members on the flight. Of these 56 disembarked in Shanghai, 41 caught a connecting flight to Guangzhou, 17 transferred to Beijing, and two were refused entry to China. That accounts for 116 of the passengers, some of whom --including the Mexican male -- flew on to Hong Kong, taking China Eastern Airlines flight MU505.

The Mexican was put into quarantine in the Metropark Hotel, in Hong Kong, said the Special Administrative Region's Health Department.

All those quarantined were quarantined on the orders of China's Health Ministry.

Expert praises Mexican citizens' fight against swine flu

Special Report: World Tackles Swine Flu

MEXICO CITY, April 28 (Xinhua) -- Citizens' participation is key in
checking the spread of the A/H1N1 swine flu virus responsible for 159 deaths in
Mexico, an academic epidemiologist told Xinhua on Tuesday.

"Steps can be taken to overcome the epidemic only when citizens follow the
information and instructions given by the federal government and the Mexico City
mayor's office," said Robna Galaz, who earned her doctorate at the National
Polytechnic Institute in Mexico.

Five days after the health authorities declared an epidemic outbreak, the
number of cases tops 2,000 with 70 percent of them yet to be confirmed as the
new swine flu strain.

Galaz said that official instructions to wear face masks, wash hands
frequently, avoid large gatherings, and consult a physician early if in doubt,
would not only protect the individual but also the family, community and all
society.

Face masks quickly became visible in public transport, malls, streets and
offices. She also praised the Mexican army for its Plan DN-III, deployed to the
streets to distribute the masks.

People believe the government is delivering trustworthy information that
calms the population, said Galaz.

"Mexico can fight this new virus as soon as it has more information," she
said. "It currently incubates from two to five days and there is enough time to
attack it."

She added that the nationwide suspension of classes from nursery to
university starting on Monday was a precautionary measure to allow the other
places of the country to detect new cases or outbreaks.

Mexican supermarkets urge consumers not to make panic buying

Special Report: World Tackles Swine Flu

A customer walks in front of an empty
shelf at a supermarket in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, on April 29,
2009. Mexico's supermarkets on Tuesday urged consumers not to engage in
panic buying in response to the swine flu that has killed over 150 in the
country. (Xinhua/David de la paz)
Photo
Gallery

MEXICO CITY, April 28 (Xinhua) -- Mexico's
supermarkets on Tuesday urged consumers not to engage in panic buying in
response to the swine flu that has killed over 150 in the country.

The National Association of
Self-Service and Department Stores, which represents the largest supermarkets in
Mexico, issued a statement after citizens began bulk buying in supermarkets due
to a circulating email warning that stores and gas stations may soon close.

Customers wait to pay for their
shopping at a supermarket in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, on April 29,
2009. Mexico's supermarkets on Tuesday urged consumers not to engage in
panic buying in response to the swine flu that has killed over 150 in the
country. (Xinhua/David de la paz)
Photo
Gallery

The supermarkets would continue operating during
normal working hours, unless the government orders the contrary, said the
17,000-member association.

Financial analysts warned that panic purchases could
trigger inflationary pressure.

Mexico City, the worst hit region, on Tuesday ordered
the closure of bars, theaters, cinemas and dancehalls. It said that restaurants
could only serve take-away food.

The federal government on Monday ordered all
educational institutions from nurseries to universities be closed until May 6.It
means that over 30 million of Mexico's 107 million citizens are at home.