Scientists in Australia have become the first to recreate the new corona virus disease (COVID-19) outside of China in what they have called a “significant breakthrough“. The discovery will be shared with the World Health Organization (WHO) in the hope it may help efforts to diagnose and treat the virus.
Across the world, many people have been diagnosed with the coronavirus which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan.
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is affecting 29 countries and territories around the world.
A novel strain of corona virus disease (COVID-19) which emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan have new cases of infections being reported daily around the world.
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With China carrying the most, the Chinese government who confirmed the number of deaths on Tuesday has also closed a number of temples, the Forbidden City and part of the Great Wall to help reduce the spread in the country.
There’s a new confirmed case on the African continent and Experts fear the deadly disease will reach countries with weak health systems. Past viral outbreaks have stretched already-strained healthcare systems in a number of countries, although there have been no confirmed cases to date – several countries have reported suspected cases of the rapidly spreading disease that originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.
Below is a break down of the countries who have confirmed coronavirus cases (COVID-19).
Australia
Australia has confirmed 12 cases of the virus as of February 2: Four in New South Wales, four in Victoria, two in South Australia and two in Queensland.
Most of the patients arrived in the country from Wuhan or Hubei province.
READ: How coronavirus started
Belgium
Belgium said on February 4 that one of nine repatriated Belgians from Wuhan has tested positive for the corona virus disease (COVID-19).
Cambodia
Cambodia confirmed its first case of coronavirus on January 27.
Minister of Health Mam Bunheng said the patient was a 60-year-old Chinese national in the coastal city of Sihanoukville.
Canada
Canada has confirmed four cases of the corona virus disease (COVID-19) as of February 2.
China
As of the end of February 3, the number of people infected was confirmed at 20,438 in mainland China, most of them in and around Wuhan.
At least 425 people have died, nearly all of them in Hubei Province, but officials have confirmed a number of deaths elsewhere, including in the capital Beijing.
The city of Macau, a gambling hub hugely popular with mainland tourists, has confirmed 10 cases.
Hong Kong reported its first death from the disease on Tuesday of a man who had travelled from Wuhan. Some 15 people are known to have been infected, with hundreds of suspected cases reported.
READ: How to protect yourself from Coronavirus
Egypt
EGYPT confirmed on Friday its first COVID-19 case and said the affected person was a foreigner. This is the first coronavirus case in Africa.
Finland
A Chinese tourist who was admitted to hospital for tests has been confirmed as having been infected with the corona virus disease (COVID-19).
The patient is said to be a 32-year-old woman from Wuhan.
France
There are six confirmed cases of the corona virus disease (COVID-19) in France, the first European country to be affected. The most recent was a doctor who contracted the virus after treating patients.
France’s health minister has said it is likely that there will be more cases and that authorities are surveying everyone the patients have come into contact with since arriving in France.
Germany
Germany has registered 12 confirmed cases of the corona virus disease (COVID-19), with a majority of the patients in the southern state of Bavaria.
Ghana
2 cases were recorded on March 12, 2020. Both individuals returned to Ghana from Norway and Turkey. One is a Norwegian national, who’s a senior official at the Norwegian Embassy in Ghana, and the other a Turkish citizen.
India
On February 3, a third positive case of the corona virus disease (COVID-19) was reported in India’s southern state of Kerala, the country’s health ministry said.
All three are students who returned from Wuhan, according to local media.
The first case, reported on January 30, was a student at Wuhan University who returned to Kerala.
How to protect yourself ftom Coronavirus #coronavirusec #CoronavirusWho #CoronaOutbreak pic.twitter.com/WveqvGYHBb
— Netbuzz Africa (@netbuzzafrica) January 30, 2020
Italy
Doctors confirmed on January 30 that two Chinese tourists had tested positive for the coronavirus in Italy.
The tourists, reportedly a husband and wife, were being held in isolation in the Spallanzani Infectious Diseases Institute in Rome.
Police sealed off the room they had been staying in at a hotel in the centre of the capital and other Chinese tourists who had arrived in Italy as part of the same tour group were being tested for the virus, Italian media said.
Japan
On February 1, Japan’s health ministry reported three new cases, bringing the number of infections in the country to 20, including two cases of human-to-human transmission in the country.
The new cases were three people who returned from Wuhan on government-chartered flights.
Malaysia
Malaysia on February 4 confirmed its first citizen to be infected locally with the new corona virus disease (COVID-19), bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 10. All other cases involve Chinese citizens.
Nepal
Nepal said on January 24 that a 32-year-old man arriving from Wuhan had tested positive for corona virus disease (COVID-19).
The patient, who was initially quarantined, recovered and was discharged. The government said surveillance has been increased at the airport “and suspicious patients entering Nepal are being monitored”.
The Philippines
Philippine health officials confirmed the first death from coronavirus outside China on February 2.
The man who died was the 44-year-old partner of a woman who was diagnosed with the corona virus disease (COVID-19) on January 30. She remains in stable condition in hospital.
The couple had arrived in the Philippines on January 21, travelling through Cebu and Negros before arriving in the capital, Manila.
Russia
Russia has reported its first two cases of corona virus disease (COVID-19) on January 31.
Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said the infected patients were Chinese nationals who had now been isolated.
Golikova said the patients were in the Zabaikalsky region, which borders China, and in the Tyumen region, bordering Kazakhstan.
Singapore
Singapore on February 4 announced the first local transmission of the deadly virus, with the health ministry reporting six more patients. Four of the latest cases involved human-to-human transmission in the city-state, bringing the total number of infections to 24.
South Korea
On February 4, South Korea said a 42-year-old woman tested positive for corona virus disease (COVID-19) after visiting Thailand, bringing the number of cases in the country to 16.
Spain
Spain reported its first case on January 31 in a man on the island of La Gomera in the Canaries. He was one of five people isolated after coming into contact with an infected German man.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka confirmed its first case of corona virus disease (COVID-19) on January 27.
The patient was identified as a 43-year-old Chinese woman from Hubei Province who had arrived in Sri Lanka as a tourist. She was admitted to the Infectious Diseases Hospital.
Sweden
On January 31, Sweden’s Public Health Agency said a woman had tested positive for corona virus disease (COVID-19) and was being kept isolated at a hospital in southern Sweden.
The woman had visited the Wuhan area in China and began coughing after she arrived in Sweden. She contacted a hospital in southern Sweden, where she is being treated. She is not gravely ill, the agency said.
Taiwan
Taiwan has confirmed 10 cases, including two Chinese women in their 70s who arrived in the country as part of a tour group.
Thailand
Thailand confirmed six new cases on February 4, four of them Thai nationals and two Chinese, bringing the total number of corona virus disease (COVID-19) patients in the country to 25.
United Arab Emirates
The UAE confirmed its fifth case on February 1 in a Chinese national who came from Wuhan. UAE authorities previously said at least four Chinese nationals from one family had been confirmed to have corona virus disease (COVID-19).
They were the first cases reported in the Middle East.
United Kingdom
The UK confirmed its first two cases of corona virus disease (COVID-19)on January 31 in two patients from the same family in England.
“The patients are receiving specialist NHS care, and we are using tried and tested infection control procedures to prevent further spread of the virus,” said Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer.
“The NHS is extremely well-prepared and used to managing infections and we are already working rapidly to identify any contact the patients had, to prevent further spread,” he added.
Update: "We now advise British nationals in China to leave the country if they can… Where there are still British Nationals in Hubei Province who wish to be evacuated, we will continue to work around the clock to facilitate this" @DominicRaab
— Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (@FCDOGovUK) February 4, 2020
United States
The US confirmed 11 cases of the virus on February 2. There are six in California, two in Illinois, one in Arizona, one in Massachusetts and one in Washington state.
Vietnam
A 30-year-old Vietnamese man, who returned from Wuhan, and one more unidentified person tested positive for corona virus disease (COVID-19) on February 4, bringing the number of infected people to ten.
WHO urges countries to step-up data sharing as virus spreads
The World Health Organization (WHO) said there’s a “window of opportunity” to halt the spread of the virus and urged countries to immediately share information about cases.
Outside of China, Thailand has logged the highest number of infections with 25 reported cases. Singapore’s number of cases rose to 24 on Tuesday.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn said that the EU could consider a US-style entry ban on foreign travelers who were recently in China.
“Indeed, there is the question of possible travel restrictions or at least increased examination at the border,” Spahn said after talks with this French counterpart in Paris.
Germany and France are pushing for an EU health ministers’ meeting to better coordinate the response to the virus, he added.
The World Health Organization (WHO) in a press briefing said on Tuesday evening that China’s measures to contain the outbreak have provided a “window of opportunity” to stop the virus from spreading further abroad.
Here are some key takeaways from the press briefing with WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus:
- The risk of the virus spreading more around the globe remains high, but “this is still first and foremost an emergency for China.”
- Countries have been advised not to impose trade or travel restrictions on China as such measures cause “fear and stigma.”
- The WHO is sending 250,000 tests virus tests to laboratories around the world to help speed up the testing process.
- So far, there have been 27 cases of person-to-person transmission of the virus outside of China.
- Wealthier countries were criticized for not sharing data about virus cases. The WHO has only received complete information about 38% of the cases reported outside of China.
There are 16 known cases of corona virus disease (COVID-19) in South Korea. Demand for medical masks and hand sanitizer has surged in recent days. Prices have risen significantly.
The government said that sellers found to be in possession of more than one and half their average sales volume will face sharp fines and jail time.
Meanwhile, Pakistan refuses to evacuate Pakistani students currently in Wuhan, despite their pleas to be brought home.
"It’s important to underline that 99% of the cases are in #China, and 97% of deaths are in Hubei province. This is still first and foremost an emergency for China"-@DrTedros #2019nCoV #EB146
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) February 4, 2020
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