THREE CHILDREN DIE OF FLU IN HONG KONG: HUNDREDS SICK; SCHOOLS SHUT - IS IT SARS OR BIRD FLU?

BBC: HK schools close amid flu fears

All kindergartens and junior schools in Hong Kong have closed early for their Easter holiday, after a flu-like illness killed three children.

The Education Bureau described the move as a "precautionary measure".

More than 30 students from one school have showed flu-like symptoms and three children have died from apparently similar illnesses in recent weeks.

Experts are investigating a link to either bird flu or Sars, a respiratory disease that hit Hong Kong in 2003.

The kindergartens and junior schools will be closed for two weeks, affecting more than half a million children.

Almost 200 cases of suspected flu have been reported so far.

Hong Kong's health chief, York Chow, said the decision to close the schools was made as the high rate of flu-like infections was expected to continue for weeks.

"We hope such precautionary measures will help reduce the cross-infection of the flu virus in schools and the community," the official Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying.

Expert team

Over the weekend seven-year-old Law Ho-ming was admitted to hospital in a semi-conscious state, suffering from fever and flu.

He died on Tuesday from encephalitis - swelling of the brain.

IS IT SARS? BIRD FLU? PANIC? STAY TUNED...