Flu worry shadows China's longest public vacation

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-10-03 20:32

Many are rushing back for family reunion as the Mid-Autumn Festival is traditionally for family to get together, and some are sightseeing across China.

Since A/H1N1 is highly transmissible through respiratory droplets, crowded trains could be risky.

Vivian Tan, spokesperson of World Health Organization China Office, said, "The risk of infections is all around us, and what we can do is to take simple measures to protect ourselves."

Beijing government has started vaccinating local residents. Around 10,000 paraders on the National Day celebrations are vaccinated for free.

But many seemed not to be precautious.

On a train bound to Taiyuan in northern Shanxi province from Beijing on Thursday, two out of 75 passengers in a carriage were wearing masks.

"I don't think the flu is horrible so I take no preventions against it in my trip," Jiang said.

"So far, most cases have been mild, but we are concerned that there could eventually be more severe cases emerging," Tan said.

China had seen a relatively small number of A/H1N1 cases compared to its large population but the number had increased sharply in recent weeks, she said.

As of September 30, China has confirmed 19,589 A/H1N1 cases and the figure was 10,221 on September 16, a rise of 92 percent. No fatal cases were reported, according to the Health Ministry.

"Still we cannot cancel gathering or postpone travel indefinitely, especially since pandemic usually last 1-2 years. Life cannot come to a standstill, or social-economic losses would be enormous," Tan said.

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