China is "very likely" to have a regional outbreak of the A/H1N1 influenza and its first death from the virus in the foreseeable future, as the number of the flu cases rises in the country, a health ministry official said on Monday.

"A collective occurrence of the disease or a possible regional outbreak of the influenza is inevitable at this point," Liang Wannian, vice director of the emergency office under the Health Ministry, said at a press conference.

"The number of imported cases of the A/H1N1 flu is expected to continue to increase in the near future, and more local people will be infected by the virus," he said.

As the total of the infected increases, the chances of medical workers, pregnant women and people with chronic diseases being infected will rise, making the possibility of A/H1N1 flu fatalities "extremely possible," he said.

The Chinese mainland reported a total of 729 A/H1N1 flu cases as of 6:00 PM on June 28, with no fatalities so far.

(Xinhua News Agency June 29, 2009)