Tag: health

US to evacuate its citizens from China virus epicentre

  WUHAN, China (AFP) –The United States is arranging a flight to evacuate personnel and American citizens trapped at the epicentre of a deadly virus in central China, the US State Department said on Sunday. The flight will leave on Tuesday from the city of Wuhan to take consular personnel to San Francisco, the department said in an email to Americans in China, warning that there would be limited space for private citizens. “This capacity […]

JUST IN: Canada reports first ‘presumptive’ coronavirus case

  MONTREAL, Canada (AFP) — Canada’s first “presumptive” case of a new coronavirus has been detected in a man who returned to Toronto from the Chinese city where the virus first appeared, health officials announced Saturday. “We have the first presumptive case confirmed of this novel coronavirus here” in Toronto, Eileen de Villa, head of the city’s public health agency, said at a press conference. The patient, a man in his 50s, had been staying […]

Australia confirms first coronavirus case

  SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Australia on Saturday confirmed its first case of the new coronavirus that has claimed 41 lives in China, becoming the latest country in a growing list to be affected by the illness. The sick man arrived in Melbourne from China a week ago from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, the government said. Authorities in Victoria state have followed “strict protocols, including isolating the affected person,” […]

US confirms second case of China virus, 50 suspected cases under investigation

  A woman in Chicago in her sixties was Friday confirmed as the second patient on US soil infected with a deadly new virus originating in China, health officials said, with 50 other suspected cases under investigation. The contagion has so far claimed 26 lives in China, sickened hundreds and has spread across several Asian countries as well as the US. “I’m pleased to report she is clinically doing well and is in stable condition,” […]

Nepal reports South Asia’s first confirmed case of deadly virus

  KATHMANDU, Nepal (AFP) — Health authorities in Nepal on Friday confirmed that a student who returned from Wuhan, China tested positive for the new coronavirus, becoming the first South Asian country to report the deadly disease. The 32-year-old student arrived in Nepal on January 9, and entered the Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital in Kathmandu four days later after running a fever and reporting trouble breathing, hospital spokesperson Anup Bastola told AFP. The […]

Three coronavirus cases confirmed in France, first in Europe

  PARIS, France (AFP) — Three cases of the coronavirus have been “confirmed” in France, the first in Europe, officials said Friday. The first case involved a patient in hospital in the southwestern city of Bordeaux while the other was in Paris, French Health Minister Agnes Buzyn told reporters. A third person, who is a close relative of one of the other two, has also been confirmed to have the virus, the health ministry said […]

China rushes to build new 1,000-bed hospital for coronavirus patients within 10 days

  BEIJING, China (AFP) — China is rushing to build a new hospital in a staggering 10 days to treat patients at the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak that has stricken hundreds of people, state media reported Friday. The facility in the central city of Wuhan is expected to be in use by February 3 to serve a rising number of patients infected by a coronavirus that has left at least 26 people dead […]

Shanghai Disneyland closes over China virus concerns

  SHANGHAI, China (AFP) — Shanghai Disneyland will close until further notice this weekend due to a deadly virus outbreak that has infected hundreds of people in China, the amusement park said Friday. The closure comes as China entered its nearly week-long Lunar New Year holiday, and the home of Mickey Mouse had prepared special “Year of the Mouse” celebrations for its guests. But the park and resort said on its website it would temporarily […]

Japan confirms second coronavirus case

  TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s health ministry said Friday it had confirmed the country’s second case of a novel coronavirus strain, in a man who travelled from the Chinese city of Wuhan. In a statement, the ministry said the man in his 40s was a resident of the Chinese city where the outbreak began and arrived in Japan on January 19. He reported having had a fever for several days before his arrival but […]

China virus toll jumps to 25 dead with 830 confirmed cases: govt

  BEIJING, China (AFP) — The death toll in China’s viral outbreak has risen to 25, with the number of confirmed cases also leaping to 830, the government said on Friday. The National Health Commission said authorities were also examining 1,072 suspected cases of the virus that first emerged in central city of Wuhan. The markedly higher numbers were released just hours after the World Health Organization stopped short of declaring the situation to be […]

Studies suggest role of bats, snakes in outbreak of China virus

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A new strain of coronavirus that emerged in China may have originated in bats or snakes, according to genetic analysis of the virus that has so far killed 17 people. The theories are based on examination of the genome sequence of the virus released by authorities in the wake of the outbreak, with two studies pointing to the likely role of bats in the outbreak. One study, published Tuesday in the […]

China quarantines city at center of virus outbreak

by Eva XIAO / Laurent Thomet with Dario Thuburn in Geneva BEIJING, China (AFP) — China placed the city at the center of a virus outbreak under effective quarantine on Thursday, suspending outward flights and trains in a drastic step to contain a contagious disease that has killed 17, stricken hundreds and reached other countries. Authorities in Wuhan, a major transport hub, also suspended public buses and subways, and said residents should not leave the […]