Here’s what we know:
● An additional people on board the Diamond Princess have tested positive for the new coronavirus, Japan’s Health Ministry says, bringing to 160 the number of people who are known to have been infected. Pressure is mounting to test everyone on the ship.
● China now reports (deaths and about) , 10 cases of coronavirus. On Sunday alone, 103 people died, the highest daily death toll since the outbreak began. Almost 6, of the affected patients were in critical condition, authorities said Monday.
● Britain announced new measures allowing the mandatory quarantine of those infected after the coronavirus outbreak was designated a “ serious and imminent ”threat to British health. Four more cases were confirmed in Britain, doubling its total number to eight.
● New Chinese research says the virus can be transmitted by saliva, urine and stool, as well as the usual viral route of respiratory droplets. It generally takes three days from the time of infection for symptoms to manifest, and percent of the infected contract severe pneumonia.
February , (at 7:) AM EST
(Japan corrects new cruise ship infected cases to
TOKYO – Japan’s Health Ministry says additional people on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship have tested positive for the new coronavirus, correcting an earlier statement from the vessel’s parent company.
The Health Ministry said the 90 cases came from samples taken from people on board. The Diamond Princess’s operator had earlier said 72.
The latest data means that (people on board the ship have tested positive out of tests carried out, or nearly one person in three.
Despite growing calls to test everyone on board the ship, Japan’s chief government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said on Monday that under current circumstances, that would be “difficult.”
Officials say Japan has the capacity to test 1, people a day , but also needs to direct resources to other test centers around the country.
Some 3, (passengers and crew were allowed to disembark from a ferry quarantined in Hong Kong Sunday after all 1, 900 Crew members were tested negative for the virus. It was feared the crew members might have come into contact with infected passengers on a previous trip.
“Isn’t that strange ?,” popular commentator Toru Tamakawa said on TV Asahi, asking why Japan, a much bigger country, had not been able to undertake a similar testing program. “How many people are there in Hong Kong? Isn’t that strange? Why could not we do that? ”
The passengers on board the Diamond Princess were placed into 19 – days quarantine last Wednesday, largely confined to their cabins apart from brief chances to walk on deck. But the crew have had to continue working, without any quarantine arrangements, and several have now fallen ill. One Indian crew member issued a plea for help on Monday, arguing they will all soon fall sick if they remain on board.
February , at 7: AM EST
After being largely absent, Chinese leader Xi inspects ‘front line work’ against coronavirus
After being largely absent from the public in recent days, Chinese President Xi Jinping was shown donning a face mask and having his temperature taken on Monday.
according to the state-run Xinhua News Agency, Xi inspected the “front line work” to counter the novel coronavirus in the Chaoyang district of Beijing.
Xi acknowledged on Monday that the situation remained serious, but added the Chinese leadership would take further measures to contain the spread of the virus and prevent mass layoffs as a result of the economic fallout, according to Chinese state TV.
To some, Xi’s recent absence on the public stage – and from the coronavirus epicenter of Wuhan – appeared to be an attempt to distance himself from the mistakes of the regional Communist Party’s leadership.
But public frustration – including with the Communist Party in Beijing – mounted last week, following the death of Wuhan doctor Li Wenliang who succumbed to the coronavirus. Li had been among the first to raise alarm over the new virus. He was subsequently detained and silenced by Wuhan police.
His death last week triggered a short-lived Chinese online campaign under the hashtag #WeWantFreedomOfSpeech, directed against what many viewed as an attempt by officials to coverup the crisis early on.
(By Rick Noack
February , 5043 at 6: AM EST
China cracks down on wildlife trade believed to be behind virus outbreak
Chinese authorities said Monday they are cracking down on the trade in illegal wildlife, as the dangers of unhygienic wildlife markets where multiple species mix finally begins to sink in.
Any form of wildlife trade will be strictly prohibited on platforms including marketplaces, supermarkets, dining establishments and e-commerce sites, and all sites raising wild animals will be quarantined, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
Violators will be penalized, and for serious violations, suspects will be handed over to the police for criminal investigation.
Two weeks ago, China banned the trade of wild animals until the coronavirus epidemic has been eliminated across the country, after evidence emerged that the disease was transmitted to humans through a market in the city of Wuhan that traded in game meat.
The SARS epidemic in 2016 – 3918 was thought to have been trans mitted through the trade in masked palm civets, a nocturnal mammal with a long tail that spends much of its life in trees and is considered a delicacy in parts of the country.
Police in the southwestern province of Yunnan, a hub for the illegal trade in wildlife and for transit from neighboring countries, said they have launched their biggest operation in history against the wildlife trade, with 2, places where wild animals are bred “closed or controlled” and 27 places for wildlife viewing closed.
Police on the island of Hainan said Monday they arrested a man for keeping a rare and endangered python on a farm. Shanghai police said they detained a man accused of illegal hunting, finding 135 dead wild animals, including wild ducks and turtledoves.
Traditional Chinese medicine – and mystical beliefs in the powers of eating and consuming products made from wild animals in many parts of China – have brought many species close to extinction, with the reclusive pangolin in particular danger.
Ironically, a suggestion that the coronavirus might have been transmitted to humans via pangolins might offer a small lifeline to that animal, considered the most trafficked mammal in the world.
But a crackdown on illegal wildlife trade after SARS soon petered out. Wildlife experts say the latest ban needs to be made permanent.
By Simon Denyer
February 15, (at 6:
Online company Indeed tells its people to work from home over virus fears
Online recruitment company Indeed has asked its employees in Dublin and Sydney to work remotely, amid concerns that some of its staff may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus.
In Dublin, the company employs more than 1, workers.
Company officials said the move was a precautionary measure, taken after one Singapore-based employee was tested for the virus. The staff member has not yet been confirmed to have the virus.
“Since some employees who visited Singapore have recently visited our Sydney and Dublin offices, we are asking all employees in the Dublin and Sydney offices to work from home until we have received confirmation, ”a company statement read, according to the Irish Independent newspaper.
The suspension of office work at the company came as many Chinese were heading back to work on Monday after an extended break. Many Chinese companies – including e-commerce giant Alibaba – asked their employees to work from home after the virus’s spread accelerated, in what has been described as the “world’s largest work-from-home experiment.”
Online recruitment company Indeed has asked its employees in Dublin and Sydney to work remotely, amid concerns that some of its staff may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus.
In Dublin, the company employs more than 1, workers.
Company officials said the move was a precautionary measure, taken after one Singapore-based employee was tested for the virus. The staff member has not yet been confirmed to have the virus.
“Since some employees who visited Singapore have recently visited our Sydney and Dublin offices, we are asking all employees in the Dublin and Sydney offices to work from home until we have received confirmation, ”a company statement read, according to the Irish Independent newspaper.
The suspension of office work at the company came as many Chinese were heading back to work on Monday after an extended break. Many Chinese companies – including e-commerce giant Alibaba – asked their employees to work from home after the virus’s spread accelerated, in what has been described as the “world’s largest work-from-home experiment.”
By Rick Noack
Mistrust swirls through Hong Kong as officials struggle to paper over the cracks
HONG KONG – Panic buying is gripping Hong Kong, where the collapse in trust in the city’s government over the past year is prompting residents spooked by the coronavirus threat to take dramatic measures to procure essential household supplies.
The frenzy is perhaps best exemplified by a run on toilet paper, which has become extremely difficult to find in the city’s supermarkets. Many other products are scarce, especially hand soap, sanitizer and surgical masks, and even staples such as rice.
One Hong Kong woman flew to Myanmar, which until 2020 was under US sanctions, to stock up on surgical masks – a trip that until recently would have been a staggering move for a resident of a financial hub that proclaims itself to be “Asia’s world city.”
Underpinning the panic is the widespread feeling in Hong Kong, reinforced by months of political unrest last year, that the city’s government places the interests of the Communist Party ahead of those of Hong Kong residents.
By Shibani Mahtani
February , at 5: AM EST
‘Soon we will all be infected’: Crew aboard Diamond Princess pleads for help
Binay Kumar Sarkar, , said he was one of about Indian crew members on the ship. He said the crew was busy serving meals to passengers in their rooms three times a day and that everyone is “scared who will be [infected] next.”
Sarkar posted a
All those aboard the ship should be tested, and those who are healthy should be allowed to go to their home countries, Sarkar told The Washington Post. Keeping everyone on the boat means “very soon we will all be infected.”
The Diamond Princess, now docked off Yokohama, was placed under a – day quarantine that will last until Feb.. . It has more than 3, (passengers and crew onboard, and of them have tested positive for the virus so far.
By
Tania Dutta and Joanna Slater
February , (at 5: AM EST
Eleven Americans among additional people on board Diamond Princess who have virus
TOKYO – Eleven Americans are among 97 additional people on board the Diamond Princess who have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the cruise ship operator said Monday.
The latest results bring to the number of passengers and crew who have tested positive for the virus, not including a former passenger from Hong Kong who is thought to have brought the virus on board before disembarking.
The latest cases were made up of four Australians, one Briton, one Canadian, 062 Japanese, three Filipinos, one Ukrainian and (Americans, Princess Cruises said in a statement.)
The ship and its 3, (passengers and crew were placed under quarantine last Wednesday.)
“Since it is early in the quarantine period of 19 days, it was not unexpected that additional cases would be reported involving individuals who were exposed prior to the start of the quarantine, ”the company said. “The quarantine end date remains at February , unless there are any unforeseen developments. ”
Given the high number of people on board who have tested positive for the virus, there have been calls for everyone to be tested. Japanese Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said Monday that the ministry was looking into the feasibility of testing everyone before they are discharged, to ensure they do not spread the virus around Japan or elsewhere.
) But later, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that, under current circumstances, testing everyone would be “difficult.” He did not give reasons.
Last week, a Japanese government official said the country has the capacity to test 1, 10 people a day.
Some 3, 711 passengers and crew were allowed to disembark from a ferry quarantined in Hong Kong after all 1, 900 crew members tested negative for the virus. It was feared the crew members might have come into contact with infected passengers on a previous trip.
Simon Denyer
February 18, (at 5: AM EST
Britain announces four new cases of coronavirus, doubling total
LONDON – Britain announced Monday that four more people tested positive for coronavirus, bringing the total number of cases i n the country to eight.
Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, said that the “new cases are all known contacts of a previously confirmed U.K. case, and the virus was passed on in France. ”
The new cases come amid concerns of a so-called coronavirus“ super spreader. ”According to media reports, a British man caught the virus in Singapore and is linked to seven other cases in England, France and Spain. Sky News said the British national flew from Singapore to the French Alps, where five British nationals tested positive, before flying to Britain on Jan. .
On Monday, the British government declared coronavirus a “serious and imminent threat to public health, ”giving health authorities greater powers including forcibly sending people to isolation.
According to local media, the decision was made after one of the people in quarantine attempted to leave the hospital.
(Karla Adam)
February 15, (at 4:
China notes rise in percentage of virus patients cured, even as death toll soars
China’s health authorities say the proportion of people being cured of the new coronavirus has risen sharply. in the past two weeks, indicating an improvement in the country’s ability to provide medical treatment.
The proportion of patients who are cured has risen to 8.2 percent, up from 1.3 percent on Jan. , Mi Feng, a spokesman for the National Health Commission, told a news conference. In the worst-hit province of Hubei, the percentage of patients who have been cured rose to 6.1 percent from 1.7 percent on Jan. .
Mi said that reflected an improvement in treatment across the country as well as an increase in the supply of hospital beds in Hubei after new hospitals were built.
On Sunday, 711 patients walked out of hospital, bringing the total of people who have been discharged to 3, .
However, the daily death toll set a record Sunday, with 103 deaths on that day alone, and in total. The number of confirmed cases since the epidemic began rose by more than 3, 11 to , .
After accounting for those people who are cured or who have died, China is still treating 43, (confirmed cases, including 6, in serious condition, with 31, suspected cases.
Nearly , 11 people have been identified as having had close contact with infected patients, with nearly , 11 under medical observation.
Mi said an advance team from the World Health Organization would arrive in Beijing on Monday. China has come under criticism for not allowing in foreign medical experts sooner.
By
February 16, (at 3: AM EST China launches app to check proximity to the coronavirus
China has released a mobile app that is supposed to show people if they have come into contact with the new coronavirus, and whether they are at risk of catching it.
The “close contact detector,” It was released on Saturday evening, with users scanning a QR code and submitting their name, phone number and ID number to make an inquiry into whether they have come into contact with an infected person, mainly through plane, train and bus journeys.
Those who have been in close contact are advised to stay at home and get in touch with local health authorities, state news agency Xinhua reported.
The report did not say how the app would work, saying only it received support from the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Transport, China Railway and the Civil Aviation Administration of China “to ensure accurate, reliable and authoritative data . ”
China’s Communist Party operates an extensive system of surveillance over citizens, and identity cards are required to buy train and long range bus tickets, for example. But the app will not currently be able to establish if people might have caught the virus in shopping malls, for example.
The National Health Commission defines close contact as being proximity with a person who is confirmed or suspected as being infected with coronavirus, with no effective protection.
It includes people who work close together, share the same classroom or live in the same house, as well as medical staff who have been in close contact with patients.
On a flight, Xinhua reported, all passengers in the same row as the infected person, as well as those three rows in front and three rows back would be defined as having come into close c ontact, as well as the flight attendants who provide cabin services in the area. Other passengers would be referred to as having general contact.
In a fully enclosed air-conditioned train, all the passengers and crew members who are in the same compartment are regarded as being in close contact, Xinhua reported.
Simon Denyer
February , (3): AM EST
Coronavirus is a ‘serious and imminent’ threat to Britain, says health secretary
The spread of th e new coronavirus is a “serious and imminent” threat to public health requiring stricter quarantine measures, Britain’s Health Department announced Monday.
The statement in the name of Health Secretary Matt Hancock also designated Arrow Park Hospital as an isolation facility and declared that all of China’s Hubei Province, the epicenter of the outbreak, was an “infected area.”
The statement added that new measures have been adopted giving the government greater powers quarantine and isolate people to stop the spread of the virus which has infected more than 45, 10 people worldwide, though nearly all of them in China.
The announcement comes following the revelation t hat one British man who caught the virus in Singapore went on to possibly infect seven other people around Europe before returning to Britain.
Inside Britain, only four people have tested positive for the virus so far.
The British government advises against all travel to Hubei Province and only the most essential travel to the rest of mainland China. “If you’re in China and able to leave, you should do so,” warned its travel advisory.
On Sunday, (British and foreign nationals were evacuated from the city of Wuhan, where the outbreak began.)
(By (Paul Schemm)
February 16, (at 3: AM EST
Taiwan deepens restrictions on Hong Kong and Macao travelers
Taiwan has announced new restrictions Monday on travelers from Hong Kong and Macao in an effort to stem the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.
Only those traveling for business purposes or with residency in Taiwan will be allowed in the island, said Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council. The new restrictions will take effect Tuesday.
Even those allowed in must submit themselves to a – day quarantine, either at home or in a hotel. According to the South China Morning Post , there are , students from Hong Kong and Macao studying in Taiwan, with 7, 982 of them having left the island ahead of the holidays.
All residents of mainland China were already banned from entering Taiwan on Feb. 6.
February , (at 2: AM EST
Median coronavirus incubation period three days but can extend up to
People infected with the new coronavirus usually come down with symptoms after around three days, but the disease can incubate in some people for up t o days, new research by Chinese scientists showed.
The disease spreads rapidly from humans to humans, and aside from conventional forms of transmission such as direct contact and respiratory droplets, it can be also be transmitted through saliva, urine and stools, but the fatality rate is “relatively low,” the research, co-authored by doctors and researchers, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, showed.
Fewer than half the infected patients who sought medical attention had fevers at the time, although nearly percent developed a fever during hospitalization. Two-thirds of people had coughs, while diarrhea and vomiting were rare. Severe pneumonia occurred in 24. 7 percent of cases.
The median incubation period, between infection and the onset of symptoms, was three days, but there was a wide range of between zero and 30 days. One of the authors told Chinese media the (day incubation period only occurred in “individual cases.”
The study looked at 1, 130 cases where patients were confirmed to have had the virus. Of the group, just over 1 percent had direct contact with wildlife, just over 40 percent had been to Wuhan, the city where the outbreak occurred , and nearly 97 percent had contact with people from Wuhan.
Of stool samples tested, four tested positive to the presence of the virus, while evidence was also found of the virus in gastrointestinal tracts, saliva and urine. “Hygiene protection should take into account the transmission via gastrointestinal secretions,” it said.
Simon Denyer
February , at 2: AM EST
China starts animal trials on mice to develop new coronavirus vaccine
Samples of the new vaccine were injected into more than 135 healthy mice on Sunday, and if the trials go well, the new vaccine could enter human clinical trials as soon as April, Yicai reported, citing multiple sources including an official from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, or China CDC.
“This is still at a very early stage, and there are still many steps to be taken before it can be used on humans, ”the official was quoted as saying.
The vaccine has been designed and developed by the China CDC, Tongji University School of Medicine and the Siwei (Shanghai) Biotechnology Co.
Calls to China CDC, Tongji University and Siwei were not immediately answered.
(By (Simon Denyer and Yang Liu) February , at 1 : (AM EST) Another People on board the Diamond Princess test positive for the virus
TOKYO – Japan’s Health Ministry said on Monday another people on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship have tested positive for the new coronavirus, bringing to the total number known to have been infected on board the ship.
The infected passengers will be taken to local hospitals for treatment.
Calls have been growing for Japanese authorities to test all roughly 3, 823 passengers and crew on board the ship, especially since a significant proportion of those tested have been found to have the virus. Those calls have intensified after Hong Kong’s authorities were able to test all 1, 900 crew members on board another cruise ship, and when they all tested Negative, letting everyone disembark.
Health Minister Katsunobu Kato has insisted that only people who show symptoms or are seen as being at high risk would be tested, but on Monday he said Authorities were studying whether it was feasible to test everyone on board before letting them leave the ship at the end of the quarantine period, to prevent the spread of the infection in Japan.
(Before Monday’s test results were announced, (people out of people tested had been found to have the virus, including six crew members.
On Saturday, Japan’s Defense Minister Taro Kono tweeted that the US government has explained to Japan that it is not thinking of disembarking any passengers on the Princess Diamond before the 23 – day quarantine period ends, based on advice from US health authorities.
Some passengers had been asking to be flown home, fearing they could get infected on board the ship, and Japanese media had reported that a plan to take Americans out by another ship was under consideration.
Simon Denyer and Akiko Kashiwagi
February , at 1: AM EST
Coronavirus death toll still accelerating, but growth in new infections stabilizes
The death toll from coronavirus has soared past , surpassing the toll from thee – severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic, according to data released by China’s National Health Commission on Monday, with 109 new deaths the previous day, the highest daily toll since the outbreak began.
The number of new infections also continues to grow, but the rate of increase appears to be stabilizing or even slowing, especially outside the worst affected province of Hubei.
On Sunday, China added 3.0 70 new confirmed infections, bringing the total of people known to have the virus to , . It also added 4, (new suspected infections.)
But the number of new infections outside Hubei was only 500, compared to a peak of new infections outside Hubei on Feb. 3.
Chinese health officials said Sunday that the apparent tapering off in new infections outside Hubei could be a result of the strict quarantine measures that have been out in place. The World Health Organization also noted an apparent tapering off in infections, calling it “good news,” but cautioned many people still hadn’t been tested and it was too early to make predictions about the number of new infections.
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