A total of 4,043 schools and kindergartens were closed in and around both cities at the request of government authorities, up from some 2,000 on Monday, an education ministry official said. -- PHOTO: AFP
KOBE (Japan) - JAPAN closed more than 4,000 schools and kindergartens on Tuesday, double the previous day's number, to slow the spread of swine flu which has infected 173 people in the country, officials said.
Many people in the affected urban areas were wearing face masks after the western cities of Kobe and Osaka became the first in Japan to suffer domestic outbreaks of the (A)H1N1 virus which spread rapidly through two schools.
Flu cases surge
TOKYO - JAPAN confirmed 38 new swine flu cases overnight to brings its tally to 173, health officials said on Tuesday, as the government considered scaling down quarantine checks at airports while focusing on its domestic outbreak.
The outbreak in Japan went from just four cases over the weekend to 158 as infections were confirmed in the port city of Kobe and nearby Osaka, which is Japan's second-biggest urban area. The new wave of infections did not have a clear connection to foreign travel, as the initial one did, and involved primarily teenagers.
KOBE - HUNDREDS of Japanese students whose schools have been closed this week to contain a swine flu outbreak have instead flocked to karaoke parlours with their friends, club operators said on Tuesday.
Authorities in and around Osaka and Kobe cities have shuttered more than 4,000 schools, kindergartens and colleges after the first swine flu cases were confirmed Saturday and the number of infected reached 178 by Tuesday.
A total of 4,043 schools and kindergartens were closed in and around both cities at the request of government authorities, up from some 2,000 on Monday, an education ministry official said.
Japan's number of confirmed cases has risen to 173 - the fourth largest national figure on the world infection table - in the central Honshu island region since the first confirmed domestic infection was reported on Saturday.
No fatalities have been reported in Japan.
Experts warn the virus would likely soon spread to other regions, including the capital Tokyo, which with almost 36 million people is the world's most populous urban area and the heart of the Japanese economy.
The virus is believed to have spread between Kobe and nearby Osaka after high schools from the two cities met for a volleyball tournament, with some players and coaches feeling feverish after the games.
Japan's first confirmed cases of swine flu were four people who tested positive after they flew in from North America earlier this month. They were immediately quarantined along with about 50 fellow passengers. -- AFP
