COVID-19 is appearing in more countries around the world, with Italy, Iran and South Korea new hotspots for the virus.
The coronavirus is spreading more quickly in Europe, the Middle East, and other parts of the world than in China where the virus first emerged in the central city of Wuhan at the end of last year.
The number of new coronavirus infections inside China was for the first time overtaken by fresh cases elsewhere on Wednesday, with Italy, Iran and South Korea emerging as new hotspots for COVID-19.
The disease was also detected for the first time in Brazil, Pakistan, Sweden, Norway, Greece, Romania and Algeria. In the US, where health authorities are dealing with 59 cases, President Donald Trump sought to calm concerns.
Thursday, February 27
World on brink of coronavirus pandemic, Australia’s Morrison says
There is every sign the world is about to be gripped by a pandemic of coronavirus, Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned on Thursday, as Australia kicked off emergency measures to curb the spread of the disease.
“The advice we have received today is…there is every indication that the world will soon enter a pandemic phase of the coronavirus,” Morrison told a televised news conference in Canberra, the capital.
“As a result we have agreed today and initiated the…coronavirus emergency response plan,” he added.
Australia will extend a travel ban on foreigners arriving from China by at least another week, Morrison said, although there was as yet no need to stop mass gatherings.
China city offers $1,400 reward to virus patients who report to authorities
Qianjiang, a city of around one million people in China’s Hubei province, will pay residents as much as 10,000 yuan ($1,425.96) if they proactively report symptoms of the illness and it is confirmed after testing.
The city is located around 150 kilometres (90 miles) from the provincial capital of Wuhan, and has so far reported a total of 197 cases.
Hubei has reported more than 65,000 cases and more than 2,600 deaths.
India evacuates nationals, foreign citizens from Wuhan
An evacuation flight carrying 76 Indian citizens as well as a number of foreign nationals from Wuhan arrived back in India on Thursday.
It earlier dropped medical supplies in the city where the outbreak originated at the end of last year.
China investigates release of coronavirus-infected inmate in Hubei
China has sent an investigation team to Wuhan after reports that a prison released an infected inmate who then managed to travel to Beijing.
A team led by the Ministry of Justice, Supreme Court and Ministry of Public Security will look into the incident, the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China said in a news release on Thursday.
Media reports said an infected inmate was released from a Wuhan women’s prison after completing her sentence. Family members then drove her to Beijing.
The report triggered an uproar on social media, as people asked how she could have escaped the sealed off city.
Taiwan raises epidemic response level to highest amid virus concerns
Taiwan on Thursday raised its epidemic response level to the highest, official media reported, amid growing concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.
Taiwan’s Central News Agency said Premier Su Tseng-chang announced the decision in a cabinet meeting on Thursday, citing sporadic cases of community transmission on the island.
Taiwan has logged 32 cases of the coronavirus and one death, and has largely suspended travel and tourism links with China to curb its spread.
Japanese woman confirmed with coronavirus for 2nd time
A woman working as a tour-bus guide in Japan has tested positive for the coronavirus for a second time, Osaka’s prefectural government said on Wednesday, the first person in the country to do so amid growing concerns about the spread of the infection.
The second positive test comes as the number of confirmed cases in Japan rose to 186 by Thursday from around 170 the day before.
New US coronavirus case may be 1st from unknown origin
A new coronavirus case in California could be the first in the US with no known connection to travel abroad or another known case, and a possible sign the virus is spreading in a community within the country, health officials said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported the case on Wednesday.
California officials said the person is a resident of Solano County, northeast of San Francisco, and is getting medical care in Sacramento County. They did not immediately release any other details.
South Korea reports 13th death from coronavirus
The Mayor of Daegu, the city at the centre of South Korea’s coronavirus outbreak, said a 13th person had died from the infection on Thursday. The figure was not confirmed by the KCDC.
South Korea reports 334 additional coronavirus cases, lifting total to 1,595
South Korea reported 334 additional cases of the new coronavirus on Thursday, raising the total tally to 1,595, the Korea Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (KCDC) said.
The figure is the largest reported additional cases in the country since its first case was confirmed on January 20.
Of the new cases, 307 were in the southeastern city of Daegu, where a church that was at the centre of the outbreak is located, the KCDC statement said.
China reports 433 new coronavirus cases, 29 deaths on Feb 26
Mainland China reported 433 new cases of coronavirus infections on February 26, the National Health Commission said on Thursday, up from 406 on the previous day.
The total number of confirmed cases on mainland China has now reached 78,497, the health authority said.
The number of new deaths stood at 29, the lowest daily rate since January 28, and down from 52 the previous day. A total of 2,744 people have now died as a result of the outbreak.
Hubei, the central Chinese province at the epicentre of the outbreak, reported 409 new cases and 26 deaths on Wednesday. Beijing and the provinces of Heilongjiang and Henan were the locations of the other three fatalities.
US, South Korea postpone joint exercises over virus
The US and South Korea on Thursday postponed planned joint military exercises as a result of the coronavirus.
The decision to delay the training was made after Seoul declared its highest “severe” alert level over the virus, Combined Forces Command said, adding the postponement was “until further notice”.
The United States has 28,500 troops in South Korea.
Trump says US ‘very ready’ for virus; Pence to lead response
President Donald Trump declared on Wednesday that the US was “very, very ready” for the coronavirus and put Vice President Mike Pence in charge of overseeing the nation’s response.
Trump also sought to minimise fears of the infection spreading widely across the US, saying, “I don’t think it’s inevitable”.
He said the US might have to restrict travel to Italy, South Korea and other countries as a result of the outbreak, but now was not the right time.
Health authorities at the White House news conference said Americans should be ready for what could become a wider outbreak requiring such steps as school closures.
“Our aggressive containment strategy here in the United States has been working and is responsible for the low levels of cases we have so far. However, we do expect more cases,” said Dr Anne Schuchat of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Shanghai trying to find people who crossed coronavirus patient from Iran
Shanghai is taking action to try and identify people who came into contact with a coronavirus patient who arrived in the city from Iran, the local government said on Thursday.
The patient, who has not been identified, was diagnosed in Zhongwei, a city in the northwestern region of Ningxia, some 2,000 km (1,240 miles) away, on Wednesday.
Authorities in Zhongwei said the patient arrived in Shanghai on February 20 after flying from Iran via Moscow. The patient then travelled to Zhongwei via the city of Lanzhou by train.
Trump says ready for coronavirus response on ‘much larger scale’
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the US was prepared to escalate its response to the novel coronavirus on a “much larger scale” should the pathogen continue to spread.
“We do have plans for a much larger scale should we need that,” he said.
“We have hospitals in states that make rooms available and they’re building quarantine areas where you can keep people safely.”
Asked if the US had increased its stockpile of protective equipment such as face masks and gowns, he said: “We’ve ordered a lot of it, just in case we need it.”
IMF, World Bank consider ‘virtual’ Spring Meetings as virus spreads
Growing concerns inside the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank about the spread of the new coronavirus have prompted the institutions to consider scaling back their Spring Meetings in April or hold them by teleconference, people familiar with the discussions told Reuters.
The institutions’ April 17-19 Spring Meetings are scheduled to bring some 10,000 government officials, journalists, business people and civil society representatives from across the globe to a tightly packed, two-block area of central Washington DC.
Saudi Arabia suspends entry for Muslim pilgrims
Saudi Arabia has temporarily suspended visas for the Islamic pilgrimage and visits to Al-Masjid an-Nabawy in Medina, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Twitter on Thursday.
The kingdom has also suspended entry to Saudi Arabia for anyone with tourism visas from countries where the coronavirus is a threat. The foreign ministry also called on citizens not to travel to countries where the new coronavirus is spreading.
SOURCE: AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES