HONG KONG: Health officials in Hong Kong yesterday said that 60 more people had fallen ill with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), more than half of them in one apartment complex, pushing the number of infections worldwide past 1,600.
At least 56 people are now known to have died of the infection worldwide.
One of the latest victims was the doctor who identified the virus. The World Health Organisation announced that Dr Carlo Urbani (46), an Italian WHO expert on communicable diseases, died on Saturday in Thailand, where he was receiving treatment after becoming infected while working in Vietnam.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the US said on Saturday that none of the anti-viral drugs or other treatments tested against SARS has been effective.
Hong Kong has now reported 530 cases of SARS, although officials noted that 60 patients there had recovered. Hong Kong has reported most cases of the infection after mainland China, which has reported some 800 cases and 34 deaths. - (AP)