Thirty pupils have been confirmed as A/H1N1 flu cases in a primary school in south China's Guangdong Province, local authorities said on Sunday.

Twenty-four students in Shipai Township Central Primary School in Dongguan City fell ill on Thursday and Friday. They were confirmed as A/H1N1 flu cases on Sunday, according to the provincial health department.

Previously, another six pupil from the same class developed fever, cough and a sore throat on Wednesday. They were confirmed as A/H1N1 flu cases on Friday.

The local authorities decided to close the school for a week after the first case was reported.

All the students were in stable conditions as their illness was mild, doctors said.

The school, with a total of 1,314 students, had been disinfected. Doctors were checking where the pupils were infected by the virus.

Those who had close contact with the pupils have been ordered to stay at home for observation, the Dongguan city government said.

The students had not left Dongguan for 10 days before they caught the flu, and there were earlier no such flu cases in the city. Guangdong, however, had confirmed 111 A/H1N1 flu cases by Sunday, the largest number among mainland regions.

(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2009)