Results tagged “swineflu”

A student from Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics has reportedly died from A/H1N1, marking the fourth death in China from the Swine Flu. The death was brought about from the contagion spreading during obligatory military training, where twenty eight students were infected with the virus and quarantined. The student was also the first in a major city to die from Swine Flu, although there have been related deaths. As the flu season descends on us in Shanghai, it might be a good idea to go get a flu vaccination. Or at least refrain from licking pigs. Photo from badgirlsrpeople2 @ Wordpress

Just in time for the national day celebration, Beijing announced that it has begun a countrywide swine flu vaccination campaign. Shots were administered to thousands of students participating in the 60th anniversary parade and will be given to 65 million citizens by the end of the year, with priority placed on those in public service and the infirm. China is now the first country to implement such a campaign against swine flu: given the drastic increase in swine flue cases, we hope the effort is enough.

• Google Earth Used By Netizens To Discuss Urban Planning [chinaSMACK] "For those of you who lived in or been to any major city in China, you must have at one point gotten stuck for hours during the morning commute or being lost within the maze of side streets and intersections. Things apparently don’t look that much better from the bird’s eye view, as curious Chinese netizens shockingly discovered (thanks to Google Earth) that even cities in Africa have seemingly better city planning and layouts than Chinese ones. The crux of the arguments boils down to whether it was truly poor city planning or because that most Chinese cities, like Rome, were not built in one day."
• The Akamai Of The East [Forbes] "In the first seven months of this year, 40 million users plugged into China's Internet for the first time, about 7 million more than the entire population of Canada. For China's Web sites and telecoms, that's a server-straining, broadband-bending rate of growth. For a privately held Beijing company known as ChinaCache and its investors, it's the kind of statistic that opens champagne corks. As the top content delivery network (CDN) in mainland China, ChinaCache holds a near monopoly on the lucrative business of selling Internet-based companies a fast track through the country's congested cyberspace."
• Taiwan film festival pressured to drop film about Chinese dissident [Monsters and Critics] "After Chinese protests, the organizer of the Kaohsiung Film Festival came under pressure Thursday to cancel a showing of a film about the life of a Chinese dissident. The Kaohsiung Film Archive announced earlier this month that it planned to show the Ten Conditions of Love, a documentary about exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer, during its October 16-29 film festival in Taiwan's second-largest city."

With the flu season beginning, it's certainly good to take precautions: keep warm, drink lots of fluids, avoid swine flu, et cetera. But that may be hard to do: Chinese health officials have now reported over 9,100 cases of A/H1N1 on the mainland. What's worse, more than half of the cases have been reported in the past three weeks. In response, China's health department has prepared enough Tamiflu for ten million people, which is a startlingly high number, even in China. We're not the type to panic over pandemics, but we're going to unpack our extra sweaters and sanitary face masks just in case.

Two months after the first swine flu-related death in China, Shanghai has been hit with its own number one serious victim. A 35-year-old migrant worker is currently comatose and suffering from multiple organ failure in Shanghai No. 1 People's Hospital thanks to the A/H1N1 virus. He fell ill on Thursday and was confirmed to have the flu on Friday. His status comes as over 100 people across China were infected with A/H1N1, which according to Xinhua means that the peak season for flu has begun. Better start reviewing that PSA we wrote up about preventing, identifying and treating this dastardly disease.

• South China rains kill 20, force 700,000 from homes [Xinhua] "Torrential rains and floods in southern China have left at least 20 people dead and two missing. More than 700,000 people have been relocated as downpours have destroyed houses, flooded crops, cut power, damaged roads and caused rivers to overflow, according to the latest figures from the provinces of Hunan, Fujian, Jiangxi and Guangdong and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. "
• SHANGHAI BUILDING COLLAPSE: Hundreds protest [Straits Times] "HUNDREDS of Chinese homeowners protested outside government offices in Shanghai demanding refunds after a 13-story apartment building in a complex under construction toppled over, newspapers reported on Sunday. The Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post said the protesters marched on Saturday through central Shanghai, holding handwritten signs and chanting: 'Lotus Riverside, refund (our) homes!'"
• China apologizes to Mexico for tough swine flu stand [AFP] "China's Health Minister Chen Zhu Friday apologized to his Mexican counterpart for failing to warn him about the tough measures Beijing imposed on Mexicans to combat swine flu. "I regret that I did not talk first" to Minister Jose Angel Cordova, Chen said on the sidelines of a meeting in Cancun about the swine flu pandemic."

• Shanghai has decided to stop on-board aircraft passenger temperature checks, to the dismay of budding photographers hoping to document the bizarre hazard suit teams. [Shanghai Daily]
• Mudwrestling at Martini Bar? Those are two things we thought never would really mix, but it somehow happened. [SmartShanghai]
• What a load of bull. Shanghai's planning on building a bigger version of Wall St.'s charging bull statue to be placed on the waterfront. It'll mark the tail end of China's Year of the Ox and... we guess, be auspicious somehow. [The Age]

Just like they warned, China's now reported its first death related to swine flu - though they're not sure if the death was actually caused by the virus. A 34-year-old female patient in Zhejiang province had been recovering from H1N1 when she was found dead on her toilet yesterday morning. The hospital said her temperature had been normal for a week, she was coughing only occasionally and her other symptoms were disappearing. The death was ruled as accidental, though police are still investigating. The total number of mainland infections is currently at 867. Source: SCMP

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Welp, they tried. Despite the makeshift hazard suit wearing airplane temperature checkers, the proposals for ever more stringent visa regulations, and everything else the government has done to try and stop swine flu, it looks like localized "cluster outbreaks" of H1N1 just can't be avoided. As Guangdong struggles with the mainland's first community outbreak, the Ministry of Health has warned that there will likely be "serious cases or even deaths." Guangdong currently has 233 known infections, the most in China. Health officials are predicting that it may be the first place in the country to experience a swine flu-related death as well. Source: SCMP

• In China, a new breed of dissidents [WSJ] "Political consciousness is beginning to spread," says Merle Goldman, professor emerita of history at Boston University and associate at Harvard University's Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. "Ordinary people use the term 'rights' now," she says. "The problem is, of course, that there's not much they can do about it at this point. But the concept is there."
• Nine cases added to mainland total [Shanghai Daily] "The Guangdong Health Department said last night that three new cases in Shenzhen had been confirmed. They were two Chinese sisters aged 18 and 20 who flew in from New York on Thursday and a 13-year-old Canadian girl who arrived in Shenzhen from Canada on Saturday."
• 'Mass hysteria' in Jilin: Fair call, or fog? [Caijing] "More than 1,000 workers at the Jilin Chemical Fibre Group Co. Ltd. in the northeastern city of Jilin reported dizziness, nausea and other symptoms during a three-week health crisis that so far has defied clear explanation."

Shanghai confirmed its fifth case (already!) of swine flu over the weekend. This time, the patient was a 23-year-old female college student who had been studying in the U.S. She had taken a flight from New York to Hong Kong on Thursday. On Saturday, she developed a fever and was quarantined at Shanghai No.1 People’s Hospital. Eight family members and friends are under medical observation for the week. Shanghai’s first case, a businessman who had flown in from Melbourne, has recovered and is now out and about town.

Despite China's strident attempts to protect itself from the A/H1N1 virus, a domestic case was discovered yesterday in Guangdong province. The patient had been in direct contact with another suspected flu patient, one who was confirmed to be a carrier of the virus on Thursday.

Those two suspected cases we told you about this morning have now been confirmed! That means that Shanghai has now gotten its first swine flu victim. The 30-year-old who arrived from Australia on Saturday was hustled straight to the Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center after registering at 38.8 degrees upon getting off the plane. He had first started experiencing symptoms, including runny nose and fever, three days before his flight. 24 people who were in close contact with him on the plane are now under quarantine and the Shanghai government is on the look out for 20 more passengers that ought to be under observation as well. If you were on or know anyone who was on the Air China CA178 flight from Melbourne on Saturday, please contact authorities now by calling 12320. Source: Shanghai Daily

There have now been nine confirmed cases of H1N1 on th Chinese mainland, with two new patients cropping up in Beijing and Fujian province over the weekend. In Fujian, a two-year-old girl tested positive for swine flu after returning from the U.S. with her family via Hong Kong. Meanwhile, in Beijing, the confirmed was a 46-year-old man surnamed Zhang who had flown over from Canada. Unfortunately, he took the subway several times before showing symptoms, possibly contaminating all of Beijing. Meanwhile, there are two suspected cases in Zhenjiang province and Shanghai. The Zhenjiang patient is a 19-year-old boy who came to New York. The Shanghai case is a 30-year-old Chinese man working for an Australian company who flew in from Melbourne. So far, swine flu has claimed no casualties in this country. Source: China Daily

Yet another swine flu patient has been found in Beijing, making it the third case to be discovered this week and China's fifth case overall. The latest patient is a 21-year-old Chinese Canadian male who came over from Toronto. He arrived in Beijing on May 16 and sought treatment for a fever on the 19th. It seems like there really is an uptick in H1N1 discoveries recently, which makes us really worry about our plans to head out of the country this summer. It also brings up the question: how many more cases before we stop reporting them individually and start in bulk? Source: Economic Observer Online

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Xinhua News: Around 5 o’clock on the 17th, an elevated road on Hongqi Road of Zhuzhou City in Hunan province collapsed, and at present the number of casualties is unknown (four casualties confirmed). Here are some pictures that were posed on various BBS forums incuding Sina, NetEase, and Mop."

Is it just us or does it seem like China's starting to rack up the swine flu cases faster? A man who returned to Guangdong from a tour in the U.S. and Canada was confirmed to be the country's fourth case of swine flu. He began to display symptoms en route from Hong Kong to Guangdong and was immediately put into quarantine. Meanwhile, an Italian tourist with swine flu symptoms is being treated at a hospital in Tibet. The 23 people traveling with her are now staying at a local hotel under observation. Source: Xinhua

Every few months, someone in Hong Kong seems to be filmed having a breakdown. Last time it was Airport Auntie. This time, it's a new "Subway Uncle" who, in the era of swine flu, explodes into a rage when a little boy coughs without covering his face.

The swine flu count stands at China:3, Hong Kong:3 after each region confirmed its third case of H1N1 over the weekend. In China, the afflicted is an 18-year-old student in Beijing who was admitted to the hospital a few days after returning from the U.S. For her troubles, she got a visit from Grandpa Wen, who warned her and other overseas students to learn more about protecting themselves. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong case was a 23-year-old male who returned from New York. He was picked up by an infrared temp screener and immediately sent to the hospital. Even though he had worn a mask on the flight, his fellow passengers may still need to be quarantined. Source: SCMP (behind paywall)

"When I set off to cover the Sichuan earthquake last May, I did not know my life and the lives of the families of quake victims would acquire a strange symmetry: of lost hopes, and the struggle to find a space to mourn. Three days after the quake struck, I found a group of migrant workers in the Beijing West railway station. They carried all they had -- bedrolls, thermos flasks, plastic basins, cooking oil -- to travel a distance equivalent to that between California and Minnesota, on badly damaged roads and rails."

China is now reporting a second suspected case of swine flu located in Shandong Province. A man, surnamed Lv, had flown from Canada to Beijing before taking a train to Jinan, Shandong's capital on May 8. Three days later, he checked himself into the Jinan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, complaining of fever, sore throat and a headache. Tests showed he was "suspected positive" of the A/H1N1 virus, though the virus specimens need to be sent to a main office for further testing. This follows two days after China's first suspected case, a man surnamed Bao who was quarantined in a Chengdu contagious disease control hospital. Source: China Daily

• In Memory: 1 Year Anniversary Of The 5.12 Sichuan Earthquake [CN Reviews] "As expected, the Chinese media and internet is crawling with content commemorating the one-year anniversary of the devastating 2008 May 12th Sichuan Earthquake (often also referred to as the Beichuan/Wenchuan Earthquake) that killed a reported 68,712 people, including 5,335 students, with around 18,000 people still listed as missing. We’ve compiled six of the most popular “512″ videos on Youku."
• The Eight Star Government Office Building [Netease - translated by ESWN] "Linyi city has three districts and nine counties, of which five of those counties are classified as "impoverished." But under the leadership of the Linyi city Party Committee and Government, a world-class government office building has been constructed. This building has an area of 120,000 plus square meters spread over 23 floors (including two basement levels) serviced by 18 elevators. The building was constructed for 38.2 billion RMB at an average cost of 3,200,000 RMB per square meter. Today it was announced by Guinness (China) proclaimed that this to be the only eight-star government office building in the world."
• China should release a critical earthquake preparedness document [China Media Project] "In early 2005, more than three years before the Wenchuan earthquake struck, a number of cities and provinces, including Sichuan and Shaanxi, participated in a wide-scale action for earthquake preparedness. That action responded to a series of central government demands, including the strengthening of dangerous and old school buildings. The time has come for China’s government to make public the critical national document behind that 2005 push."

Thought the swine flu fears were ebbing? Think again! Beijing reported the mainland's first suspected case of H1N1 (if you don't count the Hong Kong patient that was transferred over from Shanghai) after a 30-year-old male Sichuan student developed flu-like symptoms. The patient, surnamed Bao, had traveled from St. Louis to Tokyo, and then boarded Northwestern Airlines flight NW029 to Beijing. Then, on the transferring flight to Chengdu, he began exhibiting hints of the swine flu. He has tested mildly positive for H1N1 and is now quarantined in a Chengdu contagious disease control hospital. Those in direct contact with him during the diagnosis have also been placed under observation. Source: SCMP. (Photo by benchau)

• China cracks down on foreign journalists [FT.com Video] "Foreign journalists trying to conduct interviews in the Sichuan earthquake zone in western China are being attacked and detained as Beijing ratchets up security in preparation for the first anniversary of the devastating quake on May 12. Jamil Anderlini, FT Beijing correspondent, traveled to Sichuan and was the target of such attacks. He reports on how officials used violence and threats to suppress his coverage."
• From gold farmers to kings: online gaming in china [US China Today] "Apparently the virtual world has not been hit by the financial crisis. In early April, Changyou, the online gaming division of the popular Chinese portal site Sohu.com, had its initial public offering on the Nasdaq exchange. The stock jumped 25% by the day’s end, raising over US$128 million in company proceeds."
• Love, lust and time to party as hotel 'captives' scent freedom [SCMP] "Dozens of people partied in the lobby of the quarantined Metropark Hotel in Wan Chai last night to celebrate their impending release today, as guests told tales of love, lust and laughter from the week-long internment. Sheets that had covered the windows of the locked-down hotel for days were ripped down amid the festivities, revealing smiling guests raising glasses of wine, beer and other liquor and kissing one another."

You know that pig who managed to survive under the rubble of the Sichuan Earthquake for 36 days and became a hero (even though, if you think about it, lord knows what horrors he was eating to keep alive)? With the outbreak of swine flu, we guess it was high time that somebody started wondering how China's most famous pig, “Strong Willed Pig” was doing.

Happy Cinco de Mayo Shanghai! In a city that doesn't really have a lot of Mexicans, we sure have plenty of ways of celebrating their commemoration day of a battle they won against France! And even the swine flu isn't dampening our spirits (nor should it, now that Mexico says it's feeling better and we've stopped trapping its citizens in quarantine here just because they happen to hold Mexican passports). Places you could hit up tonight include:

Yes, we're sick of the scaremongering, paranoia and misinformation. While we're already cringing every time someone sneezes in the office or metro, we've realized what real paranoia is after spending the weekend in Hong Kong: doormats being disinfected every half hour, people talking through masks, masks being sold at every convenient store and an entire hotel being put under quarantine.