=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2003/04/13/i= nternational0615EDT0446.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, April 13, 2003 (AP) SARS hammers Asian tourism; Cathy Pacific executive warns airline may have = to ground fleet HELEN LUK, Associated Press Writer (04-13) 04:10 PDT HONG KONG (AP) -- An executive with Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways warned in a memo th= at the airline may have to ground its fleet if traffic keeps falling because of fears of severe acute respiratory syndrome. A spokeswoman insisted Sunday there were no plans to cease operations, b= ut the memo -- quoted by Hong Kong's South China Morning Post -- underscored the financial damage the virus has wrought on the region. As the virus killed five more victims in Hong Kong, airport officials sa= id their business is "under threat" following a plunge in traffic. Even in SARS-free Cambodia, tourism was taking a big hit as travelers shun the region. The disease has infected about 3,000 people globally and killed at least 130, mostly in Asia. In China, health officials who have been criticized for their initial handling of the disease took reporters on a tour of Beijing hospitals Sunday to show they are ready for further outbreaks. The World Health Organization said in a statement Saturday that it has added Beijing to its list of SARS-affected areas. Other affected areas include Hong Kong, Guangdong and Shanxi provinces in China; Taiwan; Toronto in Canada; Singapore; and Hanoi in Vietnam. Hong Kong's Airport Authority said Sunday that traffic at Chek Lap Kok airport had plunged from last year's level, with 30 percent of flights canceled after the WHO warned against travel to Hong Kong and Guangdong province. The WHO travel warning was issued on April 2, and the number of passenge= rs at Chek Lap Kok has been declining almost daily, from about 54,300 on April 1 to 31,700 on Thursday. This compares with a daily average of 98,600 for the same period last year. Cathay Pacific's traffic has plunged from about 30,000 passengers a day = to below 10,000 since the SARS outbreak, causing the airline millions of dollars in losses each day, newspapers reported. The South China Morning Post quoted director of flight operations Nick Rhodes as writing in a memo: "We forecast the number of passengers could fall to less than 6,000 per day in May, in which case we will have to consider grounding the entire passenger fleet." "We are literally hemorrhaging cash -- approximately $3 million per day," Rhodes was quoted as saying. A Cathay spokeswoman, Rosita Ng, called the reference to grounding the fleet Rhodes' "interpretation" of Chief Executive David Turnbull's comments at a briefing. She said Cathay has "no plans to stop operations at any future date," but declined to discuss the memo further. Cathay said in an earlier statement it had temporarily cut 42 percent of its flights. "More measures will be implemented as and when necessary," it said. As of last year, the airline had 75 aircraft with six more on order. Asian health authorities were trying to calm fears about the outbreak at the same time they were imposing stricter measures to guard against its spread. Hong Kong health officials have released a list of 169 buildings where recent SARS victims have either lived or worked. Singapore authorities ordered a person to wear an electronic tracking tag after the patient flouted a home quarantine order. Officials allowed a luxury cruise liner, the SuperStar Virgo, to return = to Singapore on Sunday after being disinfected. Thirteen crew members were quarantined after coming into contact with one or two SARS victims. In the Cambodian tourism town of Siem Reap, home to the Angkor temples, tourism has tumbled and hopes of attracting 1 million visitors this year are fading. Siem Reap saw arrivals reach 800,000 last year. "We have closed some rooms and switched off air conditioners to save energy," said manager Marc Begassat of the luxury Sofitel Royal Angkor Hotel, which is only 10 percent to 15 percent occupied. "For this moment there is nothing much you can do." =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2003 AP