(LEAD) S. Korea's confirmed cases of influenza A nears 3,000

(ATTN: RECASTS headline; UPDATES number of school closures in para 3-4)
SEOUL, Aug. 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's health watchdog said Sunday it has
confirmed an additional 106 cases of influenza A, raising the total number of
reported infections here to 2,925.

As of Sunday, 973 people were still being treated for the contagious disease, the
Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs said, with the others having made
full recoveries. South Korea reported two flu-related deaths last week.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology also said that at least 16
local schools remained closed on Sunday because of an outbreak of the new flu.
Nine schools have decided to close their doors temporarily, while seven schools
have decided to delay opening after the summer break.
The number of schools closed due to the spread of the H1NI virus has risen
sharply from the five that were closed as of August 21, the ministry said.
One school in the city of Daejeon, some 164km south of Seoul, opened on Aug. 10
but decided to shut its doors again from Aug. 19-26 after reporting nine cases of
the new flu, the ministry said.
The number of school closures is expected to grow in the coming months as summer
vacation comes to an end, with students studying abroad and holiday travelers
expected to return to the country, it said. The majority of flu cases have
involved inbound travelers, though fears are mounting over an increasing rate of
community transmission of the disease.
The ministry called on schools to restrain from holding events that involve large
gatherings of students.
Amid a global shortage of the flu vaccine, the government has decided to send a
senior health official on Monday to the headquarters of two global vaccine makers
-- GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi Pasteur -- to secure enough doses to inoculate 13
million people, or 27 percent of the nation's population, from November to
February of next year.
Green Cross Corp., a South Korean vaccine developer, is expected to provide some
6 million doses of the vaccine by February next year, and Seoul says it will also
import some 7 million doses from overseas vaccine producers.
Two middle-aged South Koreans died of flu-related complications in mid-August,
marking the first fatalities in the country since the disease was first reported
here in early May, prompting fears that the disease is spreading at a faster
pace.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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