BEIJING, Oct 10 (AFP) - China said Saturday it had already vaccinated more than 300,000 people against swine flu but warned the nation was facing a "grim" task of preventing outbreaks and keeping the number of deaths in check.

"Up to now, there are more than 300,000 people who have received the A(H1N1) vaccine in the whole country," health ministry spokesman Deng Haihua told reporters, according to a transcript on the ministry's website.

"Severe cases and deaths might continuously emerge, and the disease prevention and control situation is quite grim," he warned.

Deng's comments came just four days after China announced its first swine flu death, after a patient in Tibet succumbed to the virus. The government immediately sent 200,000 doses of A(H1N1) vaccine to the Himalayan region.

By Friday, China had recorded a total of 22,830 cases of swine flu, more than 17,000 of which were reported in September alone, Deng said. (AFP)