[Al Arabiya Latest] Chinese authorities have lifted a quarantine order that was imposed on a remote town of 10,000 people to contain a deadly outbreak of pneumonic plague, according to a report Sunday. Local authorities removed the order on Saturday evening after no new cases of the plague were detected in a week, the Beijing News daily said.China experiences sporadic outbreaks of the plague, which is typically spread by rodents and fleas and can pass easily between people. But the World Health Organization said it was not unduly concerned about this latest outbreak.
The outbreak of the highly virulent disease killed three people in Ziketan, a town in a Tibetan area of Qinghai province in China's mountainous northwest. Residents of Ziketan contacted by AFP Wednesday said some people had tried to flee the quarantine zone, which covered an area of 3,500 square kilometers (1,400 square miles), centered on the town. But officials Thursday told Xinhua news agency that no one had escaped from the zone and that no new cases had been reported. The blockade was imposed on July 30.
The disease can be a very severe in people, with a mortality rate of between 30 and 60 percent if left untreated.