The ship, Bunga Malawis Satu, had departed from Bangkok, Thailand and was heading for the southern Chinese port of Huangpu in Guangzhou when the ship master reported 10 of the 24 crew members of Indian origin had fallen ill.

The ship's master reported to port authorities that the sick crew members had shown SARS-like symptoms including a cough, fever and chills.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), originated in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong last November, and has killed 435 people and infected more than 6,000 others, mostly in Asia.

One of the crew members was reported to be in "quite serious" condition, Carrie Yau, Permanent Secretary for Health told reporters.

Port authorities received the distress call on Friday when the ship, carrying chemicals, was 100 nautical miles south-east of the southern Chinese island of Hainan.

"The director of the marine department had recommended that the ship should land at the nearest port of call" which would have been Yangjiang in China "but the ship decided to sail instead to Hong Kong," said Yau.

"According to international regulations, we cannot prohibit any vessel from entering Hong Kong... therefore we need to honour our obligations," said Yau.

Director of the Marine Department, Tsui Shung-yiu, said the ship was scheduled to arrive in Hong Kong on Sunday morning and would be moored near outlying Lamma Island.

Before departing from Thailand on April 28, the ship was believed to have also visited other ports in the region including Singapore, Tsui added.

"Port health authorities received information that some crew members had been suffering from fever, cough and pain in the joints. The ship master suspected that some of the crew had been infected by SARS," said Director of Health Margaret Chan.

"However these symptoms are also quite common and so they could have flu or dengue fever... but we are adopting a cautious approach and precautions will be taken."

After the vessel was moored, health officials would board the vessel and carry out examinations on the crew members.

"If any members have symptoms that require hospital treatment, they will be sent to Princess Margaret Hospital. Those members who are asymptomatic and are not sick will be issued with an isolation order and be required to stay on board the vessel for a 10 day quarantine period," said Dr Chan.

The recommended incubation period for SARS is 10 days.

Dr Chan added that health authorities had also been in contact with David Heyman, the head of the World Health Organisation's communicable diseases section, who had "fully approved of the actions taken by Hong Kong".

The WHO issued an advisory against travel to Hong Kong, one of the world's worst hit SARS regions, on April 2.

The former British colony reported nine deaths and 10 more SARS cases on Saturday bringing the death toll to 179 with more than 1,600 cases.

SPACE.WIRE