After being closed for a week, Saint Francis Prep High School in Fresh Meadows of New York, the school with the most confirmed A/H1N1 flu cases, reopened on Monday morning.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and city Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden were on hand to welcome students back to school.

The mayor said that the city has 73 confirmed cases of H1N1 in the five boroughs, and health officials are still waiting for confirmation on six other possible flu cases.

It is likely even more cases will be discovered, but none reported so far have been any more severe than seasonal flu, said Frieden, who said he has visited almost all the ICUs in the city.

"The flu spreads, like other viruses, and we will be seeing it in the days and weeks to come in different populations, in all likelihood," he said. "The good news is it's no more severe, from what we've seen, from seasonal flu. We've looked at every intensive care unit in New York City every day for the last 10 days. We've yet to see a single person who has severe illness that could be from this."

Bloomberg called on New Yorkers, including students, to remain "calm" and "confident," which he said is the most important thing.

P.S. 177, a public school near St. Francis, also has several confirmed H1N1 cases. That school is scheduled to re-open Wednesday.

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 286 confirmed cases in 36 states across the country by 11:00 AM on Monday, Eastern Time.

(Xinhua News Agency May 5, 2009)