China SARS numbers pass 5,000

The number of SARS cases in China passed 5,000 today as Taiwan recorded a record jump in infections and a hospital boss was fired for allegedly covering up an outbreak.

As grim statistics rolled in, the World Health Organisation visited a poor and medically backward Chinese province that could be fertile ground for a future, and potentially devastating, epidemic.

Four exclusive Shanghai hotels, including the historic Peace Hotel, closed their doors temporarily because of lack of guests.

In Malaysia, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder pressed on with a Southeast Asian tour with a drastically reduced entourage after strong last-minute pressure not to go because of SARS.

“I said go away to all those people who said you can’t go. My wife ended up understanding, and I hope other people will understand it also,” he said.

Today’s fatalities in Taiwan, as well as 12 more in China and three in Hong Kong, brought the international death toll from severe acute respiratory syndrome to at least 559. There were at least 7,400 known SARS cases.

China remains the hardest hit country with at least 252 dead.

Although some Chinese infection rates have been declining, today’s 75 cases raised its tally to 5,013.

Thousands of people more are being kept in quarantine amid fears that the disease is spreading from cities into the impoverished countryside, where medical facilities would not be able to cope with a sweeping outbreak.

WHO visited southern Guangxi province, fearing it could be hit by an epidemic that could possibly be brought in by hundreds of thousands of returning migrant workers.

“Guangxi is susceptible to infection because of its location,” said WHO spokeswoman Mangai Balasegaram. “It’s a poor region. It would be less able to cope.”

In Taipei, the Taiwan capital, the president of a public hospital that was sealed off on April 24 to contain a SARS outbreak was sacked.

He and at least one other doctor are accused of misdiagnosing SARS cases or not reporting infections.

Taiwan’s tally stood at 27 fatalities and 207 cases of infection.

It also reported 23 new cases today – its worst one-day jump since its outbreak began two months ago.