The fight is on to prevent any more tourists from cancelling plans to visit Toronto. Battling fear of SARS, the tourism industry is determined to change attitudes about visiting the provincial capital.

On Thursday, Ontario Premier Ernie Eves announced a $10 million provincial commitment to "an aggressive worldwide marketing campaign to promote Toronto and Ontario as a safe travel destination."

The money will be added to $5 million pledged by the city of Toronto, and $10 million requested from Ottawa.

Ontario Minister of Enterprise, Opportunity and Innovation Jim Flaherty said the province "will craft a comprehensive and concrete economic revival plan," but he offered no details.

Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman says he recognizes that the tourism and retail sectors say they have been hit hard by the bad press that has come with the outbreak of the disease.

"The businesses are hurting, they're hurting bad," said Lastman. "People's lives are being adversely affected by both the disease and public perception of this crisis."

Tourism is Toronto's second largest industry, bringing in 60 million tourists and $3.4 billion to the city every year. Tourism business leaders say that while the city is continuing to function normally, an international perception that the city is unsafe will soon have tourists dollars drying up.

Lastman says a committee dedicated to coping with the economic effects of SARS will meet for the first time on Monday to find ways to help the ailing city. He also says he plans to ask banks to allow customers who have been adversely affected by SARS to defer payments on loans and mortgages.

The Toronto mayor has already asked businesses to do their best to keep employees on the payroll throughout the crisis, he says, and he'll ask landlords not to toss out anyone who can't afford their rent because of the SARS fallout.

"I don't want to see SARS cost anyone their jobs, their homes, or their businesses," Lastman told reporters.

Toronto tourism officials have already been working the phones, trying to ensure travellers with plans to visit don't cancel.

One of the first groups targeted is the American Library Association. With 25,000 members set to attend their annual conference in Toronto this June, a decision to cancel would be a serious blow to the convention industry. Tourism officials are eager that the group should see the city before making any decisions.

"We will fly them up next week to see for themselves," Tourism Toronto president Bruce MacMillan said.

"They remain very committed to Toronto. They want the facts. They want the information. Kudos to them for saying they want to see for themselves."

Despite optimism that one event might be salvaged, leaders from Toronto's hotel and restaurant sectors say the economic hit is worse than the one after Sept. 11, 2001.

Rod Seiling of the Greater Toronto Hotel Association says there's no question the current situation is "worse than 9-11 and we don't know where the bottom is."

"It's like a snowball rolling down a hill at you and what we need to do is reverse that snowball," he told reporters Thursday. "It's not a crisis, it's a catastrophe in our perspective."

Terry Mundell of the Ontario Restaurant, Hotel and Motel Association agrees. Mundell says it's "a little bit frustrating" to have Prime Minister Chretien on holiday, refusing to comment on the World Health Organization's travel advisory against Toronto.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization advised against travel to Toronto, where 16 people have died from SARS. The advisory has been followed by similar warnings from several other countries.

Paul Clifford, president of Local 75 of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees International Union, estimates that thousands of hospitality workers have already been laid off as a result of negative attitudes about the city. And with the recent WHO announcement advising against travel to the city, those numbers are widely expected to climb.

On Friday, tourism industry officials will join other representatives of Ontario industry associations and businesses for a special session on best SARS-response practices. The closed meeting, organized by the Ontario division of Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, will be addressed by Ontario Commissioner of Public Health Dr. Colin D'Cunha and other senior public health officials.

As government, industry and union officials work on a plan to restore Toronto's reputation, CTV News has learned the first phase of the marketing campaign may be aimed at Toronto residents.

The plan is simple. They'll be urged to phone friends and family around the world to deliver the message: please come back to Toronto.