Sars-patient kills himself
2003-04-27 10:11
Taipei - Premier Yu Shyi-kun on Sunday called for calm after a man suspected of being infected with Sars hanged himself.
"There is no need to panic," Yu told reporters.
While pledging full government support to fight "the invisible enemy," he also said the public's co-operation would be essential for combating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars).
Health officials also joined the chorus urging the public not to panic.
"Contracting Sars does not necessariy lead to death," said Chiou Shu-ti, the health commissioner of Taipei city's health bureau.
The appeals came one day after a suspected Sars patient quarantined at the Taipei Hoping Municipal Hospital committed suicide after he discovered that his family of four had come down with the disease.
The hospital last week reported a record 19 Sars infections involving its staff, patients and families in what was the first mass outbreak on the island.
Taiwan health authorities on Thursday ordered the hospital to close and isolated its 200 patients. The hospital's 900 staff were also ordered to remain in the facility for two weeks.
Taipei's city government has ordered the arrest of people who violate quarantine orders and threatened to dismiss civil servants who defy the measure.
But some medical workers have since protested the quarantine. On Sunday several family members of those quarantined held a noisy demonstration outside the hospital claiming that their families are healthy and should not be confined to the hospital with possible Sars patients.
- AFX