HONG KONG — Hong Kong ordered more than half a million primary and kindergarten students Wednesday to stay home for two weeks because of a flu outbreak in one of the world’s most densely populated cities.
The government asked one of its top scientists to investigate the deaths of three children. But the World Health Organization said only two of the children tested positive for the flu, and both had other diseases as well.
The outbreak has not been linked to bird flu, which was detected in birds in Hong Kong. Bird flu remains difficult for humans to catch, but scientists fear the virus that causes it could eventually mutate and spread easily among humans.
The government has ordered all kindergartens, and primary and special-education schools closed for two weeks starting today, Health Secretary York Chow said. Schoolchildren — along with teachers and parents — wore masks Wednesday as they walked outside.
The closure will affect nearly 560,000 students at 1,745 schools, according to enrollment figures from the 2006-07 academic year.
