The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday confirmed reports that two more people in China had been infected with bird flu. One died while the other was in critical condition, it said.
Over the weekend, the CDC was notified by Chinese health authorities of a two-year-old girl in Shanxi Province who had fallen critically ill with the H5N1 virus, as well as a 27-year-old woman in Shandong Province who died of the virus, CDC deputy director Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) said.
The two cases likely involved contact with poultry, CDC said.
Earlier this month, a 19-year-old woman living in Beijing also died of H5N1. Her infection was also suspected to have resulted from contact with poultry.
The CDC said the three cases seemed to be isolated rather than clusters, adding that there were no indications this was a precursor to an epidemic.
“The cases are quite spread out [which in our view] is not a cause for concern. People planning to travel to China need not change their plans,” Chou said.
“However, because the H5N1 virus is prevalent in China, it is important that travelers take extra precautions and immediately see a doctor if they feel ill,” he said.
Since the report of the first death from bird flu this year, the CDC has stepped up disease control and notified health officials at Taiwan’s borders to pay special attention to passengers traveling from Beijing, especially those showing signs of fever, Chou said.
People traveling China should avoid coming into contact with birds, as well as avoid eating eggs or poultry that have not been fully cooked, he said.
SEND A MESSAGE: Sinking the amphibious assault ship, the lead warship of its class, is meant to show China the US Navy is capable of sinking their ships, an analyst said The US and allied navies plan to sink a 40,000-tonne ship at the latest Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise to simulate defeating a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan. This year’s RIMPAC — the 29th iteration of the world’s largest naval exercise — involves the US, 28 partners, more than 25,000 personnel, 40 warships, three submarines and more than 150 aircraft operating in and around Hawaii from yesterday to Aug. 1, the US Navy said in a press release. The major components of the event include multidomain warfare exercises in multiship surface engagements, anti-submarine warfare and multi-axis defense of a carrier strike
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
The airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. During last year’s exercise, the military conducted anti-aircraft landing drills at the Taoyuan airport for the first time, for which a one-hour no-fly ban was issued. Based on a live-fire bulletin sent out by the Maritime and Port Bureau, the nation’s
CROSS-BORDER CRIME: The suspects cannot be charged with cybercrime in Indonesia as their targets were in Malaysia, an Indonesian immigration director said Indonesian immigration authorities have detained 103 Taiwanese after a raid at a villa on Bali, officials said yesterday. They were accused of misusing their visas and residence permits, and are suspected of possible cybercrimes, Safar Muhammad Godam, director of immigration supervision and enforcement at the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights told reporters at a news conference. “The 103 foreign nationals stayed at the villa and conducted suspicious activities, which we suspect are activities related to cybercrime activities,” he said, presenting laptops and routers at the news conference. Godam said Indonesian authorities cannot charge them with conducting cybercrime. “During the inspection, we