Aro, a 53-year-old Finnish national, was the first foreigner to die of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) on the Chinese mainland. He was director of the ILO in the Focus Program on Skills, Knowledge and Employability.

Guo Jiyong, deputy director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Health, said Aro left Geneva on March 17 and stayed in Bangkok, Thailand, from March 18 and 23. Aro arrived in Beijing on March 23 on Thai Airlines flight TG614 to prepare for an employment forum scheduled for April 7 to 9.

Guo said China felt deeply sorrowful over the loss of Aro, a veteran of international labor affairs who had made active efforts for cooperation between China and the ILO. Guo said China mourned his death and extended heart-felt condolences to his family and friends.

Guo said a group of Chinese experts had adopted very positive medical approaches to save Aro after he was affected with SARS. But his health deteriorated so fast that he died early Sunday morning despite emergency treatment, Guo said.

Aro showed the symptoms of fever and dry coughing on March 28 and then suffered diarrhea on March 29. He received drips for several hours at the Beijing SOS center on April 1 and was diagnosed as a suspect case of SARS in the morning of April 2. The doctors decided to transfer him to Ditan Hospital in Beijing where he was put in isolation for observation and treatment at 6:30 p.m. On April 3, Aro was diagnosed as having SARS, an imported case, by Professor Wang Cheng, the chief specialist of Beijing SARS expert group.

Guo said since anti-bacteria, anti-virus and immunity enhancing drugs were universally used to cure SARS around the world, the Chinese medical team had formulated the treatment plan and used relevant medicine in line with international practice.

"We deeply regret that the medicine used this time failed to show the desired effect," Guo said.

Liu Zejun, director of the Beijing municipal center for disease prevention and control, said the center had conducted an extensive investigation on the movements of Aro during his stay in Beijing. So far no one who had had close contact with Aro had shown any symptoms of SARS. The center was keeping close contact with and making follow-up visits to all those concerned.

"We will come up with sufficient and complete preemptive plans and strict disease control and monitoring systems should any relevant symptoms emerge," Liu said.

The number of people with SARS on China's mainland hit 1,247 on April 5, of whom 51 had died, Ministry of Health official Qi Xiaoqiu said.

(People’s Daily April 7, 2003)