[twntaipan]

And I would not be surprised if the HK authorities have not got a handle on 1)isolation of those definitely infected, including their immediate families or 2)how to accurately assess who genuinely has the disease.

Despite the official secracy in China regarding the Guangdong outbreak, China has too many people coming and going (their own nationals and foreigners as well) to keep an epidemic with high infection rates and deaths completely hidden from the world.

Which brings me back to my on tin-foil hat position: their are environmental or cultural factors at play that are causing the number of infections to be particularly high in Guangdong province and Hong Kong (Hong Kong Chinese are Cantonese as are the people of Guangdong).

[CathyRyan]

Take the numbers 305-345 people sick
6,7,8 cities depending on who you believe
This has been going on since mid November

There is evidence of a certain degree of panic in China

[Mother Abigail]

The researchers said six Canadian victims of the infection, known as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), contained evidence of the human metapneumovirus, part of a family of viruses called paramyxoviruses.

Artifact

The majority of children have been infected with hMPV by age five.

[CathyRyan]

In what two weeks worldwide we have about the same numbers that China claimed in three to four months. with double the death rate.