China Saturday reported three new influenza A/H1N1 cases, bringing to 24 the total number of confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland.

The one in the southeastern province of Fujian involved a local who studied in Canada. The other two in Beijing involved a Chinese American and a Chinese student who studied in the United States.

Doctors confirmed the 23-year-old man in Fujian positive for A/H1N1 flu after assessing his symptoms and laboratory testing results Saturday afternoon.

Thirty-six out of 46 people who had close contact with him have been quarantined. Health authorities are tracking another eight as two have left China.

A quarantine official (R) guides passengers for temperature examination at the Maweigang dock in Fuzhou, capital of southeast China's Fujian Province, May 30, 2009. The third case of A/H1N1 in Fujian was confirmed in Fuzhou on May 29. [Xinhua]

The man left Toronto Tuesday and arrived in Shanghai at 3:35 p.m. Wednesday on Air Canada flight AC087. He stayed at a hotel in Shanghai Wednesday night. He left for Xiamen, Fujian, on Xiamen Airlines flight MFA 8502 Thursday morning. Then he took a car with his relatives to go back home in Dehua County of Quanzhou City in the province.

Friday morning, the man developed headache and a sore throat and went to a local hospital.

On Friday night, he was tested positive for A/H1N1 flu by the municipal Center of Disease Control and Prevention of Quanzhou. The provincial Center of Disease Control and Prevention reexamined Saturday morning the results which was also positive.

The U.S. citizen, surnamed Bao, left Chicago for Beijing Tuesday on flight UA851. The 54-year-old woman developed symptoms of a dry throat and a stuffy and running nose Thursday. She was sent to hospital after her temperature rose to 38.1 degrees Celsius Friday.

The student in Beijing, surnamed Li, arrived in Beijing on flight C089 at 3 p.m. Wednesday. He saw doctor Friday after showing symptoms of fever and body aches.

The two were tested positive for A/H1N1 by the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention Friday.

The two are in stable condition and their temperatures have fallen to normal. Most people who had close contact with them have been quarantined and none of them have shown flu symptoms, the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau said in a statement.

The bureau called on those who had returned from abroad to stay at home for a seven-day observation period. They also urged residents to avoid crowds, wash hands regularly, and take a rest at home when catching flu. The patients are urged to wear masks and not to take public transport when going to see doctors.

All the cases but one on the mainland were found shortly after they came from countries hard hit by the A/H1N1 flu epidemic. Seven were in Beijing, four in Shanghai, six in Guangdong, three in Fujian, and one each in Sichuan, Shandong, Zhejiang and Hunan.

Staff members check temperatures of passengers at the Maweigang dock in Fuzhou, capital of southeast China's Fujian Province, May 30, 2009. The third case of A/H1N1 in Fujian was confirmed in Fuzhou on May 29. [Xinhua]

Eight cases have been discharged from hospital by Saturday afternoon, according to the Ministry of Health (MOH).

China raised vigilance against influenza A/H1N1 Friday after a patient in southern Guangdong Province was declared the first case of local transmission on the mainland.

The patient, a 24-year-old woman living in Guangdong's capital city of Guangzhou, was believed to be infected by a man from New York on Monday. Guangdong provincial department of health confirmed both as A/H1N1 flu cases Friday noon.

Her flu symptoms have eased, Yin Zhibiao, deputy president of the Guangzhou No. 8 People's Hospital, said Saturday. But as the mainland's first case of local transmission, she would likely stay longer in hospital, Yin added.

(Xinhua News Agency May 31, 2009)