 More than 250 people have died from the virus worldwide |
Concern over the flu-like Sars virus has seen a drop in the number of people booking flights from Northern Ireland to affected countries. It follows new warnings from the World Health Organisation advising people not to go to Toronto or Beijing.
Sars appears to be caused by a new strain of a corona virus which may have "jumped" from animals to humans in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong.
So far the strain has killed more than 250 people, mainly in China, Hong Kong, Canada and Singapore.
Large numbers of people from Northern Ireland fly to Canada every year.
 You need to contact your travel agent if you are travelling in the near future  |
Doreen McKenzie, the local spokeswoman for the Association of British Travel Agents, said anyone planning to do so should check beforehand.
"At the moment the foreign office has issued what it calls an amber light, which means travel with caution.
"Don't travel to Toronto unless you have to whereas the rest of Canada is fine at the moment.
"Once the Foreign Office give us what we call a red light, that means don't go, it is restricted travel.
"That means the airlines and air tour operators have to give full refunds to the public so you need to contact your travel agent if you are travelling in the near future."
A University of Ulster virologist has said the best short-term way to moderate the effects of Sars is to restrict travel and put effective quarantine measures in place.
Dr Anne Bridgen, who has spent years studying the corona virus family which includes Sars, said a new drug treatment for the illness could take years to reach patients.
She said this was because of the long testing and administrative processes in bringing a new drug from the lab to the surgery.
Meanwhile, Canada has responded angrily after the World Heath Organization (WHO) listed Toronto with Beijing and China's Shanxi province as places travellers should avoid because of the danger of Sars.
Vaccine
Canada has reported its 16th death from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. It is the only country outside of Asia where people have died of the pneumonia-like illness.
The country's health agency has written to the WHO to challenge the advisory, with Health Minister Ann McLellan calling it inappropriate.
The WHO had already warned against travel to Hong Kong and China's Guangdong province, the places hardest hit by the deadly virus.
As well as affecting China and Hong Kong, the Sars virus has spread to many other parts of the world, with the total number of cases now put at more than 4,000.
Among other developments:
More than 100 representatives from the world's airlines hold emergency talks in Bangkok to decide how to tackle the Sars crisis Police in Australia are given new powers to round up and quarantine suspected Sars victims Saudi Arabia, home to Islam's holiest sites, stops issuing pilgrimage visas to many East Asian countries because of Sars fears Singapore's prime minister vows to jail "irresponsible" people who violate quarantine laws Despite having no confirmed Sars cases, Japan announces plans to install a thermal imaging camera at Tokyo's international airport to screen passengers Tourism continues to suffer, with Hong Kong-based carrier Cathay Pacific cutting 45% of its flights and Singapore reporting a 70% fall in visitor arrivals Insurance companies express fears that no airplane exists to safely repatriate Sars victims in accordance with international guidelines Scientific teams are racing to produce a vaccine, but experts have warned that the process is both difficult and time-consuming.
The Beijing Genomics Institute said this week that the virus was "expected to mutate very fast and very easily".
Even when a vaccine is available, it may only offer limited - and temporary - protection, experts have said.
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