S. Korea reports 2 suspected cases of new flu

By Koh Byung-joon

SEOUL, June 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's health authorities said Friday that they are investigating two patients suspected of having contracted Influenza A.

The Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs said in a statement that it
is conducting tests on a 47-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman for possible
infection by the H1N1 virus.
The two, both Koreans, showed flu-like symptoms after returning from a recent
trip to the United States and the Philippines, the ministry said.
The 47-year-old man is a father of a student who was confirmed to have been
infected with the contagious disease earlier this week, it added.
The latest suspected cases come on the heels of a move by the World Health
Organization to raise its alert level to the highest "Phase 6," which would mean
a pandemic is under way.
The Seoul government said after a meeting held earlier in the day that it has
decided to retain its alert status for the new flu at the current level as there
are few concerns that the disease is fast spreading across the nation.
In late April, the government upped its alert status to the current "Yellow"
level, the third-highest in the nation's four-tier disaster alert system, which
is activated when a suspected or confirmed case of transmittable disease is
reported.
Since it was first identified in late April in Mexico and the United States, 74
countries have officially reported nearly 30,000 confirmed cases of H1N1
infections, with over 140 deaths.
South Korea has remained relatively insulated from the highly contagious disease.
As of Friday morning, a total of 56 cases had been confirmed with 47 of them
being released from hospitals after showing no further symptoms. No deaths have
been reported here.