Hong Kong health authorities on Saturday urged the public not to panic after the territory reported its first human case of bird flu in 18 months in a two-year-old boy.
Hong Kong officials said the Chinese boy was in serious condition after testing positive for the H5N1 strain of avian influenza and the territory had raised the bird flu alert level to “serious.”
Hong Kong and Chinese health authorities said investigations revealed that the boy, who lives in the neighboring Guangdong Province, had visited a local wet market and had contact with a live duck in the middle of last month.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
He later developed a fever and runny nose and was taken for treatment at a Hong Kong private clinic on May 26.
“The boy’s parents are asymptomatic, which means the chance of a human-to-human transmission is slim,” a spokesman from the Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection said in a statement.
The spokesman said the boy was in intensive care, while his parents were being quarantined at the same hospital.
A government spokeswoman confirmed it was the first human case of bird flu in Hong Kong since November 2010, which involved a 59-year-old woman.
Xinhua news agency said Guangdong was on “high alert,” but tests have so far found no signs of an outbreak.
Hong Kong was the site of the world’s first major outbreak of bird flu among humans in 1997, when six people died from a mutated form of the virus, which is normally confined to poultry. Millions of birds were then culled.
The latest infection prompted Hong Kong Health Minister York Chow (周一嶽) to convene an emergency meeting as he announced a series of preventive measures, while reassuring the public that it was an “isolated” case.
“We feel that there is no need for panic among Hong Kong citizens,” he told reporters.
Chow said there were no plans to ban live poultry imports for the time being, but inspection and disinfection would be stepped up at markets. Schools and various institutions have been asked to be on alert.
“We think it is an important measure to take, particularly for Hong Kong, because we had experiences of outbreaks of avian influenza in Hong Kong,” he said.
“For this particular case, so far the chance of it being spread to other humans is relatively low. But we still need to go through the whole process of analyzing the origin and channel of the infection and have to study the virology of the virus,” Chow added.
The H5N1 strain has killed more than 350 people worldwide since 2003, according to WHO statistics, with the latest fatality reported on Monday last week involving a 10-year-old Cambodian girl.
Concerns about avian influenza have risen in the region, with China, Vietnam and Indonesia all reporting deaths from the virus this year.
In response, Taiwanese authorities said that aside from keeping a close tab on developments in Hong Kong, they were also stepping up taking samples from incoming travelers.
The Department of Health (DOH) has since Saturday been taking the body temperatures of all passengers at airports and asking for their history of contact with poultry.
All incoming travelers from China, Hong Kong and Macau will have a sample taken if they exhibit symptoms of the flu or have a history of contact with poultry, the DOH said.
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) said that any Taiwanese planning to travel abroad should be mindful of sanitation in areas with H5N1 infection.
People should avoid coming into contact with poultry, and the meat and eggs of chickens, ducks or geese should be eaten only if they are thoroughly cooked, he said, adding that people who develop a fever or symptoms similar to a cold or flu on their return to Taiwan should seek the aid of CDC personnel at the airport.
Additional reporting by CNA
Translated by Jake Chung, staff writer
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
RSS