SARS outbreak ‘nearing its end’, says WHO

THE World Health Organisation said yesterday the global SARS outbreak may be nearing an end, and hard-hit Hong Kong reported no new infections or deaths for the first day since March.

However, the WHO cautioned that the disease is not yet controlled in Taiwan. In Canada, authorities tested 23 people from two facilities for the elderly in Ontario for SARS symptoms and hundreds more were quarantined as a precaution.

In Beijing, a visiting WHO official said China has provided information on its handling of SARS cases to encourage the agency to lift a travel advisory. Hitoshi Oshitani, the WHO regional adviser in communicable diseases and SARS preparedness, said that only seven new SARS cases were reported worldwide on Wednesday, suggesting the end of epidemic could be near.