Killer bug leaves girls homesick

Killer bug leaves girls homesick

Sisters Lorna and Anna Chan write to their parents in Hong Kong

Students forced to stay at their boarding school following the outbreak of a deadly virus in Hong Kong say they are missing their family and friends.

Thirty girls who board at the independent Howell's School in Denbigh were advised not to return home for the three week Easter break following the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars).

There were nine deaths reported in China and Hong Kong last month and there have been 130 deaths worldwide from the flu-like virus.

Sixteen-year-old Vivien Lee has been a pupil at the school for eight years.

Worried

She said an outbreak of the deadly virus in her neighbourhood made her concerned for the safety of her mother, father and grandmother.

"There's been a case on our estate so I was quite worried, I was more worried than they were but they're OK because the person is recovering," she said.

"I hope to go home in the summer if things don't get any worse.

"I was going to go home anyway but the school said it would be better for us to stay so my mum decided that I should stay here."

Thirty girls from Hong Kong attend Howell's school

Sisters Lorna and Anna Chan have managed to spend the holiday together.

Lorna, 16, attends the Denbigh school and is studying for her GCSE examinations, while her 19-year-old sister is a pupil at a school in Northern Ireland.

Lorna said it was important for them to be together.

Go home

"At first I really missed my parents but I find it is quite a good idea for us to stay here.

First, I won't get the disease and second I can revise because I have my GCSE exams," she said.

"I was not very pleased when we were first told that we may not be able to go home but I think it is good for us.

"My mum told me the virus is not that serious.

"I've been showing my sister around because she has never come here before."

Her sister said it is difficult knowing their parents were still in Hong Kong.

The girls spend their time studying and entertaining each other

"I am worried about my family because they still need to go to work and they could catch it," she added.

Staff at the school have ensured the girls are well cared for and they have been taken out for day trips.

However, Louise Chow, 13, said regular letters and telephone calls home outline how serious the bug is.

"It's quite scary, nobody is going out, people are staying in and it's very quiet," she said.

"Nobody goes to the shops and my family have stopped going out as much.

"My mum stays at home because it is dangerous, they are quite worried about it.

"They usually wear their masks now when they go out."

School principal Louise Robinson said two pupils from Hong Kong have gone home for the Easter holiday.

However, they will be screened upon their return to ensure the safety of other people.

Symptoms of Sars are similar to those experienced by people suffering from severe flu - including high fever, headache, sore throat, and cough.