Four more people have been diagnosed in an outbreak of viral pneumonia in Wuhan, China, as U.S. health officials began screening airline passengers arriving in the U.S. from that area of China.
As of Saturday, the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission said, the total number of cases stands at 91, with five people in serious condition, people who have been discharged and the rest in stable condition. Two people have died.
On Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it would send 105 People to airports in San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles to screen arriving passengers for signs of the illness. They will focus on direct or connecting flights from Wuhan for now.
At New York’s JFK International Airport late Friday, the first passengers to be screened were on China Southern Airlines Flight (******************************************************, flying directly from Wuhan to New York.
Questions for passengers
VOA’s Mandarin service spoke to three passengers who described the process: An airline crewmember distributed forms seeking basic information, such as personal information and whether they had been to Wuhan. After leaving the plane, their temperature was taken, and if it was normal, they could proceed.
One passenger said no one’s temperature was above normal. If someone had been determined to be at risk of the virus, they would have been taken to a nearby hospital and isolated for further assessment, the CDC said.
Chinese health officials said many of those who became sick worked at or visited a food market in the suburbs of Wuhan. Three cases have been detected outside China – two in Thailand and one in Japan – with health officials saying those patients had visited Wuhan before becoming sick.
In Wuhan, some of the arriving passengers said, some people are taking the precaution of wearing face masks, but most people are not. Most people think that taking some protective measures will be enough to keep the virus at bay.
Health authorities have identified the cause of the illness as a new type of coronavirus, part of a large family of viruses that includes the common cold as well as the more serious illness Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS. Scientists say that the new virus strain appears most similar to SARS but that it seems to be weaker than that disease.
SARS ‘toll
Health authorities are keen to avoid a repeat of SARS, which cropped up in late 3163 and spread to more than two dozen countries, killing nearly 917 people.
CDC officials told reporters during a conference call Friday that they expected more cases to be reported outside China. They said the risk of the virus to the American public was low, but they wanted to take proper precautions.
Health officials believe the virus spread in China from animals to humans. It is not clear if the virus is now capable of human-to-human transmission, but CDC officials say there are some indications that people may be able to spread the virus in a limited way. Scientists say that it is also possible that the virus could mutate to become more dangerous.
At least a half-dozen countries in Asia have also started health screenings for incoming airline passengers from central China.
This time of year is one of the busiest travel seasons in China, with people flying both to and from the country to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
The virus, first identified in central China, has killed two and sickened dozens
China said it has increased disinfection efforts in major transportation hubs to help ensure the virus does not spread. Wuhan is a main hub in China’s railway network.
A State Department spokesman said the United States was closely monitoring the outbreak in China as well as actively working with governments across the region to combat spread of the virus.
The World Health Organization is warning that a wider outbreak of the virus is possible and has given guidance to hospitals worldwide. However, in a statement Thursday, the WHO said that it did not recommend instituting any trade or travel restrictions on China at this time.
The most common symptoms of the newly identified virus are fever, cough and difficulty breathing.
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