Outbreaks of H1N1 Not Acknowledged By Officials in China

Cases of H1N1 have been discovered in many areas in China, and it appears that local government officials are choosing to not acknowledge the seriousness of the epidemic. In Guangdong and Jiangxi provinces, patients were diagnosed with H1N1 only after they died.

Major Outbreak at High School in Hubei

A resident in Bao’an Town of Huangshi City in Hubei Province told The Epoch Times that 3,000 students of the Third Daye High School have contracted H1N1. The school has suspended classes for seven days beginning Nov. 18.

Another resident said that the 70,000 residents of Bao’an Town have recently gone through a hailstorm, a rainstorm, and a violent tornado. “Now H1N1 strikes, and we are nervous and scared. We are hiding in our homes and try not to even go outside.”

The Epoch Times contacted the Office of Academic Affairs of the Third Daye High School. The person we reached confirmed that none of the seniors are attending school. When asked about the number of identified cases of H1N1, the person denied there was H1N1 and hung up.

An official from the Bao’an Town Hall told The Epoch Times in a phone interview that he was unaware of any cases of H1N1 in the town.

A Post-Mortem Diagnosis

On Nov 17, the first death from H1N1 in Jiangxi Province was reported. The virus was only identified after the patient died—three days after her symptoms appeared.

According to an announcement by the Department of Health in Jiangxi Province, the patient was a female, 18 years of age, and a student from Nanchang City. On Nov 14, she experienced symptoms of fever, dizziness, coughing, and a runny nose. She was rushed to the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang City on Nov 16, and died at 4 a.m. on Nov 17. At 8 a.m., the Center for Disease Control in Nanchang confirmed that she was infected with the H1N1 flu virus.

The Associated Press reported a similar case in Guangdong Province.

The Epoch Times contacted the emergency division of the First Affiliated Hospital to obtain further details, but was referred to other departments. When the reporter spoke with the Director’s Office, asking why the diagnosis of H1N1 came after the patient’s death, the person refused to answer, claimed he knew nothing about it, and hung up the phone.

In an interview with The Epoch Times, Andrew Cheng, a member of the Panel on Public Health Affairs of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, questioned whether the Chinese authorities are purposely covering up the epidemic. Cheng called on authorities not to repeat mistakes that were made during the SARS epidemic.

“I hope the Central Government does not close it eyes and pretend that nothing is happening. When there are epidemics and disasters, the Chinese Communist regime consistently handles them the same way [they did during SARS], or even worse. The government should concentrate on getting to the bottom of the issue, rather than pretending that there is nothing wrong.”

The weather in many places in China has turned very cold recently. The Guangzhou Daily reported that Zhong Nanshan, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that the recent sudden change in the weather could cause an early arrival of the flu season. Zhong also expressed doubts about the official report of the number of deaths from H1N1. “Covering up the truth will only lead to worse results,” he said.

Read the original Chinese article.