Coronavirus outbreak: Chinese health authorities Sunday said that the death toll in the new coronavirus rose to 56 on Sunday, with 1,975 confirmed cases and 324 of them being critical.
A total of 2,684 cases have been reported so far, with Wuhan and 17 other cities in China’s Hubei province being the epicentre of the viral disease outbreak.
China’s President Xi Jinping held a politburo meeting on measures to fight the outbreak of coronavirus which has claimed 41 lives, PTI quoted state television on Saturday. China can “win the battle” against the virus epidemic that has infected over 1,200 people across the country, said Xi in his second public comment on the crisis.
“As long as we have steadfast confidence, work together, scientific prevention and cures, and precise policies, we will definitely be able to win the battle,” President Xi told a meeting of the elite Politburo Standing Committee, according to official news agency Xinhua.
Meanwhile, in India, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan reviewed preparedness for the prevention of novel coronavirus after at least seven Indians have been kept under observation in Kerala. According to the health ministry, seven central teams will visit states and designated airports to review preparedness for control of the virus. Vardhan also spoke to Uttarakhand Chief Minister and assured him of all support for screening at Nepal border for novel coronavirus.
Four Indians — two in Mumbai and one each in Bengaluru and Hyderabad — tested negative for the virus on Friday. With over 20,000 passengers returning from China and Hong Kong this month, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi set up an isolation ward and kept beds ready for providing treatment to any suspected case.
Outside China, Coronavirus has been detected in at least 11 other countries, almost all these cases include people who travelled from China. Know how to track Coronavirus spread worldwide
India is understood to have requested China to permit over 250 Indian students stuck in Wuhan, the epicentre of the new SARS-like virus, to leave the city, sources here said on Saturday. About 700 Indian students, mostly medical students, are believed to be studying in different universities in Wuhan and its surrounding areas. Authorities have prevented anyone from leaving Wuhan, the city of 11 million people at the heart of the viral outbreak which has so far infected nearly 1,300 people and killed 41 others.
The government has urged people with travel history to China since January 1 this year to voluntarily report themselves to authorities if they experience symptoms related to the deadly novel coronavirus (nCoV) such as fever, cough and respiratory distress. It said it has set up a 24x7 helpline (+91-11-23978046) to attend to public queries on the virus strain that had been not been encountered before.
An employee works to prevent a new coronavirus at Suseo Station in Seoul, South Korea. (AP Photo)
Hong Kong has declared the virus outbreak an emergency and will close primary and secondary schools for two more weeks after the Lunar New Year holiday. City leader Carrie Lam also announced Saturday that trains and flights from the city of Wuhan would be blocked.
The United States is arranging a charter flight on Sunday to bring its citizens and diplomats back from the Chinese city of Wuhan, epicentre of the outbreak of a new coronavirus, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. The plane, with around 230 people, will carry diplomats from the U.S. consulate as well as U.S. citizens and their families, the Journal reported, citing a person familiar with the operation. The United States is arranging a charter flight on Sunday to bring its citizens and diplomats back from the Chinese city of Wuhan, epicentre of the outbreak of a new coronavirus, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. The plane, with around 230 people, will carry diplomats from the U.S. consulate as well as U.S. citizens and their families, the Journal reported, citing a person familiar with the operation.
China's President Xi Jinping held a politburo meeting on measures to fight the outbreak of coronavirus, state television reported on Saturday.
The outbreak of the new virus has killed 41 and infected more than 1,300 globally as of Friday. (PTI)
The Rajasthan government has asked the Health Department to be prepared to tackle any situation arising from coronavirus outbreak. State Health Minister Raghu Sharma said that as a precautionary measure the Health Department has been put on alert for prevention and management of the disease.
Pakistan health authorities on Saturday said a Chinese national suspected of coronavirus was admitted in isolation at a medical facility in Multan in Punjab province. Feng Fen, 40, was living in a camp with Chinese workers near Multan after returning from China's Wuhan city 10 days ago.
Feng was brought to Nishtar Hospital on Friday night, National Institute of Health officials said. 'One suspected case is admitted in isolation in Multan right now. His clinical condition is stable and it does not seem to be a case of novel coronavirus. Relevant samples have been taken,' the NIH said. (PTI)
After seven more people who returned from China have been kept under observation for possible exposure to novel coronavirus, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan reviewed preparedness for the prevention and management of novel coronavirus. Seven central teams will visit states and designated airports to review preparedness for control of novel coronavirus, said the health ministry. Vardhan also spoke to Uttarakhand Chief Minister and assured him of all support for screening at Nepal border for novel coronavirus.
Australia on Saturday confirmed four cases of coronavirus. One man was being treated in isolation after arriving in Melbourne, while three other men in Sydney who had recently arrived from China were in isolation in local hospitals.
The 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) appears to cause similar symptoms to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and seems to be capable of spreading from person to person and between cities, two studies published in medical journal The Lancet have reported. Read here
At least seven people, who have shown symptoms of respiratory problems, have been admitted to hospitals in Kerala and will be tested for coronavirus. Two of the seven have been admitted to a Kochi hospital, while one each is in hospitals at Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Kozhikode and Pathanamthitta. They will be admitted for 28 days. Read in Malayalam
A doctor from China's Hubei province died on Saturday reportedly due to the novel coronavirus. China's National Health Commission announced on Saturday that death toll due to the virus rose to 41, with 1,287 people being infected. Out of the 1,287 cases, the condition of 237 is stated to be critical.
Japan has confirmed a third case of infection by China's coronavirus, the health ministry said on Saturday. The woman, who lives in Wuhan, arrived in Japan on Jan 18, the ministry said.
The Centre for Systems Science and Engineering has built a tool that shows all coronavirus confirmed, suspected and recovered patients, along with the deaths claimed by the coronavirus. There is an online dashboard that lets you see all cases of the virus throughout the world. Read more here
China expanded its lockdown against the new coronavirus to an unprecedented 36 million people, shutting down transportation in Wuhan and at least 12 other cities in central China's Hubei province as part of the ongoing containment effort. Nearly 700 Indian students are presently studying in universities in Wuhan and Hubei provinces. The Indian Embassy has established hotlines to keep close contact with them.
Chinese authorities have encouraged people in Wuhan city to wear surgical masks in public, amid the coronavirus outbreak that has killed 41 and has infected over 1300 people globally. Surgical masks work well in protecting healthcare workers in hospitals from infections from sick patients. However, there is little evidence to prove the effectiveness of such masks in protecting uninfected people outside healthcare settings. Read here
While two persons who were admitted to a civil hospital in Mumbai for possible exposure have tested negative for the infection, the blood sample of another person will be sent for testing to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune on Saturday. (PTI)
In India, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued a travel advisory to travelers visiting China regarding the coronavirus outbreak. It asked travelers to China, particularly Wuhan, to monitor their health closely and to follow public health measures.
France on Friday confirmed its first three cases of the Wuhan coronavirus, with two patients being hospitalised in Paris and one in Bordeaux.
Australia on Saturday confirmed its first case of the new coronavirus in the state of Victoria. The patient, a Chinese national who arrived from China on Jan 19 on a flight from Guangzhou, is hospitalised in stable condition in a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria health officials said.
As a stream of Malayalis traveling from parts of China return home, the Kerala government has put in place a strong line of defense to prevent the spread of infection in compliance with the guidelines of the World Health Organisation. Read more here
Malaysia on Saturday said it had confirmed three cases of coronavirus infection. Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said the three infected individuals were Chinese nationals.
China announced Friday that it is building a 1,000-bed hospital in Wuhan for patients infected with the coronavirus. Wuhan authorities said in a notice that Wuhan is constructing a hospital modeled after the Xiaotangshan SARS hospital in Beijing.
The death toll due to the novel coronavirus in China rose from 26 to 41 on Saturday. All the latest deaths occurred in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak which has been in virtual quarantine as China scrambles to contain the spread of the virus.