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China Sharply Raises Its SARS
Infections, Deaths
Sun April 20, 2003 02:57 AM ET
BEIJING (Reuters) - China,
under fire at home and abroad for failing to disclose
the extent of its SARS infections, sharply raised its
number of cases on Sunday to 1,807 from 1,512 and
revealed scores of new infections in Beijing.
The bulk of the new cases came in the capital, where
the number of infections was estimated at an alarming
339, and the city had another 402 suspected case as of
April 18, China's Vice Health Minister Gao Qiang said
in a statement.
Up until Sunday, officials had reported only 37
infections in Beijing, despite estimates from Chinese
doctors and World Health Organization experts of a far
higher toll.
There was no immediate explanation as to why the
number of new cases in Beijing was more than the
number of new cases for all of China.
Gao said 79 people had died of Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) nationwide in China, up
from the previously reported 67, since the virus
emerged in the southern province of Guangdong in
November. It leapt to Hong Kong in late February and
spread around the world.
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