WUHAN, China (AFP) — A jet carrying around 200 French citizens flew out of the virus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan on Friday, according to AFP journalists on board the flight. The French military aircraft is bound for southern France, where the passengers will undergo a 14-day quarantine, in case they are carrying the new coronavirus. The United States and Japan have already carried out airlifts from Wuhan for their citizens. A second US flight is […]
International
Coronavirus spread from wife to husband in Chicago: official
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US health officials said Thursday they have identified the first case of a person who had caught the 2019 Novel Coronavirus from another person on American soil, a man who contracted the illness from his wife. “The second person in Illinois testing positive for the Novel Coronavirus is a Chicago resident and is the spouse of the first confirmed travel associated case in Illinois,” said Robert Redfield, director of the […]
More Canadians ask for help to flee China
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — The number of Canadians looking to flee China because of the coronavirus epidemic rose to nearly 200 on Thursday while a third suspected case in Canada was confirmed. Officials told a parliamentary committee that 196 Canadians in Wuhan — the epicenter of the epidemic — have requested help getting back home, an increase from Wednesday when the government announced an airlift for 160. The Globe and Mail newspaper said the families […]
UPDATED: China virus death toll hits 213: govt
BEIJING, China (AFP) — The nationwide death toll in China’s coronavirus outbreak has risen to 213, with nearly 2,000 new cases confirmed, the National Health Commission said on Friday. In its daily update, the commission said 43 new deaths had occurred as a result of the virus, all but one of them in hardest-hit Hubei province where the virus first emerged. The latest numbers indicate that the daily death count and the overall spread of […]
Pilots sue American Airlines to halt China flights
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US pilots on Thursday sued American Airlines to force the company to halt flights to China amid the virus outbreak now declared a global health emergency. The new coronavirus has sickened nearly 8,000 and killed 170 people in China, and cases of the respiratory illness have been reported in several other countries including the United States. Major airlines worldwide have suspended or sharply reduced service to China, including US carriers […]
Many countries ‘unprepared’ for China virus: monitor
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — Many countries are unprepared to face the deadly virus spreading in China and beyond, a global health monitor warned Thursday as it urged governments to get ready. The Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB), an independent body created by the World Health Organization and the World Bank, hailed “the speed of response so far” by China and other countries affected by the novel coronavirus. “The Board, however, is concerned that many countries […]
Italy suspends all China flights after coronavirus cases confirmed
ROME, Italy (AFP) –The Italian government said Thursday it was suspending all flights between Italy and China after doctors confirmed two Chinese tourists had tested positive for the coronavirus. Health Minister Roberto Speranza has issued a “decree closing air traffic to and from China,” Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte told a news conference without giving a list of the affected airlines. “We think we are the first EU country to take this precautionary measure,” Conte added […]
The global spread of the coronavirus: Where is it?
BEIJING, China (AFP) — A virus similar to the SARS pathogen has killed 170 people and spread around the world since emerging in a market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. On Thursday, China’s National Health Commission said 7,711 people had been infected by the novel coronavirus. Outside mainland China, there have been more than 100 infections reported. The World Health Organization has declared an international emergency over the outbreak. Here are the places […]
WHO declares international emergency over novel coronavirus
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The UN health agency on Thursday declared an international emergency over the deadly novel coronavirus from China — a rarely used designation that could lead to improved international coordination in tackling the disease. “Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems,” World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said as he declared a “public health emergency of international concern”. “This is […]
Russia to shut border with China over coronavirus; “We have to do everything to protect our people,” says PM
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia said Thursday it was closing the border with China to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus and would stop issuing electronic visas to Chinese nationals. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin told a government meeting that the order had been signed “to take measures to close the border (with China) in the Far East”. “We have to do everything to protect our people,” he said. According to the government order, […]
Three Japanese evacuated from Wuhan test positive for virus
by Miwa SUZUKI / Natsuko FUKUE Agence France Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Three Japanese evacuated from the epicentre of a deadly new coronavirus outbreak have tested positive for the illness, the government said Thursday, as it faced criticism for the country’s minimal quarantine measures. The new cases were announced as another evacuation flight from Wuhan landed in Tokyo, and the government confirmed a second local case of apparent person-to-person transmission of the virus. […]
China’s health commission warns of “walking source of infection”- patients without fever but have nCoV
(Eagle News) — People who have either no symptoms of the novel coronavirus or have not developed them yet seem to be able to spread the virus, according to China’s Director of the National Health Commission Ma Xiaowei. Based on new information and research on the latest coronavirus strain, the 2019-nCoV, Ma said that the spread of the epidemic is “relatively fast” and there are cases, even those from outside China, where patients have […]