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Madrid launches coronavirus app

MADRID, Spain (AFP) — At the epicenter of Spain’s coronavirus outbreak, the Madrid region is launching an appl to help anyone feeling unwell evaluate their symptoms without ringing the overburdened call centers. Currently available online at www.coronamadrid.com, the tool “will be made available within days as a mobile application”, the regional government said on Thursday. “This application aims to help avoid the collapse of the Madrid region’s telephone helplines. Carry out this self-test only if […]

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No soap, no water: billions lack basic protection against virus

by Kelly MACNAMARA with AFP bureaux PARIS, France (AFP) — As nations around the world fight the coronavirus pandemic with mass lockdowns and travel bans, UN experts warn that some three billion people lack even the most basic weapons to protect themselves: soap and running water. The outbreak has infected some 200,000 people and killed 9,000, scorching through populations across the globe after emerging in China late last year. While Europe has become the center […]

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Thai hospitals deploy ‘ninja robots’ to aid virus battle

by Pitcha DANGPRASITH and Lillian SUWANRUMPHA BANGKOK, Thailand (AFP) — Thai hospitals are deploying “ninja robots” to measure fevers and protect the health of overburdened medical workers on the frontlines of the coronavirus outbreak. First built to monitor recovering stroke patients, the machines have been quickly repurposed to help fight the disease, which has so far killed nearly 9,000 people around the world. They have helped staff at four hospitals in and around Bangkok to […]

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First virus death in Sub-Saharan Africa as WHO warns ‘prepare for worst’

by Armel Baily with David Esnault in Abidjan Agence France-Presse OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AFP) —Sub-Saharan Africa has recorded its first COVID-19 death, a high-ranking politician in Burkina Faso, as the head of the World Health Organization urged the continent to “prepare for the worst”. “Africa should wake up,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference in Geneva on Wednesday, pointing out that “in other countries, we have seen how the virus actually accelerates after a certain […]

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Venice canals clear as city tourist-free under coronavirus

ROME, Italy (AFP) — The city of Venice is enjoying crystal clear waters in its world-famous canals due to a lack of debris from tourists and near-zero boat traffic under Italy’s ongoing coronavirus lockdown. The clear waters are a tiny bright spot in the beleaguered but beautiful city, whose economy has been virtually wiped out since tourists fled the area beginning last month, spooked by the spread of coronavirus in the country’s north. Since March […]

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Scientists search for vaccine for new Coronavirus

Jerome Kim, the Director General of the International Vaccine Institute in Seoul, South Korea, sits with  Agence France-Presse (AFP) to discuss the steps and measures being taking by the scientific community to develop a vaccine for COVID-19. Kim says it is ‘kind of remarkable’ that new coronavirus vaccine research is at the ‘pre-clinical stage’ as the world scrambles to find a solution to the outbreak.

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‘Collective fear’ psychologist explains panic behavior amid coronavirus pandemic

French professor and researcher, Dr. Jocelyn Raude, sits down with Agence France-Presse (AFP), to explain the psychology of “Collective fear” and panic behavior. “There are contagion effects on the social level: this small minority generates a feeling of concern spread to the rest of the population through the mobilization of resources for basic necessities.” Dr. Raude also explains the difference between the elderly (most affect by the virus) and the youth about their fears. “When […]

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Nintendo online gaming network back; relief for quarantined gamers

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Gamers breathed a sigh of relief on Wednesday after the end of a network outage that affected Nintendo’s online games, with internet-based systems under increasing pressure from people staying home over coronavirus. “The issue with our network services has now been fixed. Thank you for your patience!” tweeted Nintendo on its European Twitter account, with similar messages posted on its other accounts. The hours-long outage affected its online games but also […]

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Virus-stricken airlines face bailout or bust

by Andrew BEATTY Agence France-Presse SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Airlines worldwide face an unprecedented existential threat as the coronavirus shuts down global travel, leaving governments with controversial and costly decisions about which carriers to bail out. A toxic mix of fear, crippling travel bans and investor panic have pummeled the sector, with demand collapsing and carriers cutting flight capacity by up to 90 percent. One troubled airline, Britain’s Flybe, has already gone to the wall and […]

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“We are stronger than this virus”- EBC interviews US doctor who stresses value of following measures to prevent virus spread

  (Eagle News) — EBC Washington Bureau interviews a geriatrician, a doctor especializing in senior health care, who tells the viewers how adjustments are made in the US to make sure that health services continue to be given to the elderly amid the rising cases there. In the video interview, Dr. Minerva Navarro from Palo Alto, California also explained how doctors are more worried about “asymptomatic cases” as these can be much more dangerous since […]

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UK rolls out tougher virus action after dire science warning

by Alice RITCHIE / Phil HAZLEWOOD / Joe JACKSON Agence France-Presse London, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government on Tuesday unveiled a huge package of support for businesses to help them survive the introduction of tough new social measures to stem the coronavirus outbreak. The Conservative leader said Britain needed to act “like any wartime government”, as finance minister Rishi Sunak unveiled a £330 billion ($400 billion, 363 billion euros) package of […]

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Staying positive amid COVID-19 outbreak in Luxembourg

    (Eagle News) — Amid the rising cases of the coronavirus disease worldwide, people in the midst of the crisis are trying to stay positive amid the outbreak. In Luxembourg, virus cases have risen to 140.  These photos show an empty office cafeteria there. The once bustling food center has empty chairs and tables.  Food are packed individually as lunches or snacks, ready just for pick-up by customers to reduce personal contact and prevent […]

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