Chinese Authorities Begin Quarantine Of Wuhan City As Coronavirus Cases Multiply:
Wuhan's public health authorities say they are in a "state of war" as they quarantine the Chinese city in an attempt to halt the spread of a never-before-seen strain of coronavirus. "Strictly implement emergency response requirements, enter into a state of war and implement wartime measures to resolutely curb the spread of this epidemic," urged a committee of Wuhan's top officials. "Homes must be segregated, neighbors must be watched."
Later Thursday, health officials from the World Health Organization decided not to declare the outbreak an international health emergency. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that after two days of meetings in Geneva with the organization's Emergency Committee, the group was divided. "Make no mistake. This is an emergency in China, but it has not yet become a global health emergency," Tedros said. "It may yet become one." The WHO is not recommending any international restrictions on trade or travel, but does recommend exit screenings at airports.
Beginning at 10 a.m. local time (9 p.m. Wednesday ET), authorities in Wuhan, about 500 miles west of Shanghai, started sealing off public transportation, including its metro system, airport, train station and long-haul bus hubs. Livestreamed videos from the city show soldiers wearing face masks barricading the entrances to the city's train station Thursday morning to prevent passengers from entering and leaving the city.
The Chinese city of Wuhan is rushing to build a new hospital within six days to treat patients of the coronavirus that has killed at least 26 people across the country and is overwhelming the quarantined city's health system.
The 2019-nCoV virus, which had infected more than 870 people as of Friday morning, originated in Wuhan. China has closed down public-transport links in the city and at least nine others, sealing off a combined 30 million people.
Chinese tourist says she evaded coronavirus checks to fly to France
The Chinese embassy in France has urged its citizens to comply with airport coronavirus checks after a woman from Wuhan said she had evaded screenings in order to fly to France and dine in restaurants there.
The woman told on social media how she took fever medicine to mask flu-like symptoms to bypass temperature checks. Wuhan has temporarily shut down public transport to contain the deadly virus.
Coronavirus has reached Chicago, North Carolina, Minnesota, Washington, etc. 😷
See also: Wuhan's 11 Million People Face Quarantine as Virus Fears Spread
Scientist who simulated the global impact of a coronavirus outbreak says 'the cat's already out of the bag' and China's efforts to contain the disease 'unlikely to be effective'
Inside the Chinese lab poised to study world's most dangerous pathogens
Previously:
China Reports 3rd Death, Nearly 140 New Cases of Coronavirus
China Confirms Human-To-Human Transmission of New Coronavirus; CDC Confirms First US Case
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 25 2020, @04:03PM (1 child)
Keep in contained people. Just like the aids virus.
(Score: 2) by HiThere on Saturday January 25 2020, @09:11PM
That depends on a couple of unknowns:
1) How many cases are both asymptomatic and contagious?
2) How contagious is the disease?
If only people expressing symptoms are contagious, or if it's barely transmissible, then there appears to be no real problem. And we don't know.
If asymptomatic people are contagious, and if it's extremely contagious (like a cold), then it's already out in the world.
Of course, an additional concern is that viruses mutate, and just because this version is safe, doesn't mean it's not one mutation away from being horrendous.
However, early indications are that it's only moderately contagious, and that it requires considerable contact to be transmissible. So even though the current version is often deadly, it appears relatively easily controllable. Also, that you're at least most contagious after the symptoms appear. (I've no clear idea how contagious that "most contagious" stage is, though. Just that it took awhile to confirm that human-to-human transmission was happening.)
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