30 Chinese students diagnosed with A(H1N1) flu

Authorities in southern China closed an elementray school after 30 students there fell ill from A(H1N1) flu, Chinese state media reported, as infections from the virus continued to climb across the Asia-Pacific region. Six students from Shipai Township Central Primary School in Dongguan city in Guangdong province initially developed flu symptoms last Wednesday and were confirmed as having the A(H1N1) flu on Friday, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday night. Another 24 classmates fell ill later in the week, and tests confirmed A(H1N1) flu on Sunday. The students were all reported in stable condition since their illness was mild. Authorities decided to close the school, which has 1,314 students, for a week after the cases were reported. China's state broadcaster reported on Sunday that 58 more people were confirmed with A(H1N1) flu, bringing the total on the mainland to 414. New Zealand saw a one-day jump of 45 cases, a health official said on Monday, with the majority of sufferers having mild to moderate symptoms. The country tally is now at 303, with more than 250 cases reported in the last week. "The number of confirmed cases in New Zealand, as in the rest of the world, has risen rapidly," said Deputy Director of Public Health, Dr. Fran McGrath. Singapore has also confirmed 16 more cases of A(H1N1) flu, bringing the total number of people who have contracted the disease in the city-state to 142. The Health Ministry says in a statement on Sunday night that seven of the new cases were contracted locally, the most in a single day since A(H1N1) flu was first reported in the country last month.
The World Health Organisation has declared A(H1N1) flu a pandemic. As of Friday, it said more than 44,200 cases had been reported worldwide with 180 deaths, mostly in Mexico and the United States. In Seoul, South Korea's Health Ministry has confirmed 10 more cases of A(H1N1) flu, bringing the country's total to 115. A Vietnamese health official confirmed 10 more cases of A(H1N1) flu in Vietnam, bringing the total number of people contracted the disease in the Southeast Asian country to 48.