The Penang tourism department has recorded a significant drop in the arrival of tourists since the Health Ministry announced Penang's first probable Sars case o­n April 8.

Penang state executive councillor Kee Phaik Cheen who is in charge of tourism in the state said in the second week of April, tourist visits dropped by seven percent.

Occupancy rates for most Penang hotels went down to about 30 to 40 percent, from about 60 to 70 percent monthly.

Fewer visitors

A famous tourist spot in Penang, the Hillside Railway Station in Bukit Bendera, is also beginning to feel the pinch.

Railway Station manager Ahmad Shukri Jamaluddin said since Penang's first probable Sars case, there have been fewer passengers during the week days, although there were still quite a number of visitors during weekends.

"Visitors, especially the ethnic Chinese, are donning masks, but those from the European countries do not seem to bother at all," he said .

This could be due to the fact that the disease, believed to originate in China, has infected people within the country, spreading to Hong Kong, Vietnam, Singapore and Canada. It was o­nly last week that London and a few areas in the United States recorded their first suspected cases.

Hawkers and hoteliers are suffering, too.

The impact is so bad that the streets of Tanjung Bungah, which used to be packed with tourists who visit scores of souvenir stalls there, are almost deserted these days.

Award-winning hotel Rasa Sayang Resort in Tanjung Bungah experienced a 15 percent drop in occupancy rate since the announcement of the first Sars death in the country o­n April 5.

(The 64-year-old man from Jerantut, Pahang, died o­n March 30 at the Hospital Kuala Lumpur.)

Said Rasa Sayang's communications executive Saw Wei Wei, "Most of the (room) cancellations were due to Sars, not the war in Iraq.

"We were picking up rather well after 911, but the situation got worse when Sars hit the country."

'No local transmission'

Meanwhile, according to Kee, although the drop in tourism numbers was expected, she said the situation will worsen if the public is gripped by fear and panic about the disease.

She urged the people to remain level-headed about the situation so that tourists will not be scared off by undue panic.

"It's no use just talking about it. The situation will become worse if we just keep shouting. If we keep o­n pressing the panic button, we are all dead ducks.

"We must understand there is no outbreak in Malaysia. We must be very clear that there is no local transmission," she added.

All seven probable cases so far have been traced to Sars-affected countries outside of Malaysia, particularly China and Singapore. With o­ne death and o­ne recovery, five others remain warded in designated hospitals.

Penang now has two probable cases. The first is a 26-year-old Chinese Malaysian tour manager who had visited Beijing, China from March 15 to 23. He had also traveled to Bangkok, Thailand from March 28 to 31. He is still in intensive care.

The second is a 54-year-old Chinese Malaysian woman, who visited Singapore from April 6 to 11. Her condition is stable.

However, the Penang General Hospital has admitted a third Sars probable patient, a 26-year-old Chinese Malaysian from Kulim, Kedah, who commuted daily to Singapore from Johor to work. His condition is stable as well.