WHO: Coronavirus outbreak is an international health crisis
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of the new Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) as an international health crisis on Thursday after urgent consultation. More than 9.600 infections and 213 people have now died in China from the effects of the virus. Nearly a hundred infections have been detected outside China.
By calling the outbreak an international health crisis, the WHO is offering countries the opportunity to better work together to fight the virus. The procedure was developed after the SARS epidemic in 2002 and 2003. Since 2009, this crisis has been declared five times before, for swine flu, Ebola and the Zika virus, among others.
US and Japan issue negative travel advice for all of China, Russia closes border
The United States and Japan advise their citizens against all travel to China, now that the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak of the Wuhan virus an international emergency. Germany, like the Netherlands, asks its citizens to only make necessary trips to China (code orange) and to decide not to travel to Wuhan.
The number of cases of infection has increased tenfold in a week. The number of deaths in China has risen by 43 to 213 in a day. More than 9700 people have been infected and there are another 15.000 suspected cases. About 2 percent of the sick die.
Russia has closed its 4185-kilometer border with China, following Mongolia and North Korea. Pakistan has suspended all air traffic with China with immediate effect. Major airlines such as Air France and British Airways previously suspended their flights to China.
The first two cases of the corona virus have been diagnosed in Italy. The patients are Chinese tourists in Rome. Prime Minister Conte has said that all air traffic to and from China will be halted as a precaution. In Europe, the virus appeared earlier in France, Germany and Finland. In France, corona infection has now also been diagnosed in a doctor who had treated a corona patient.
The virus is officially known as 2019-nCoV and can cause deadly pneumonia in addition to flu symptoms. However, it is still too early to know exactly how dangerous the virus is and how quickly it can spread.
Source: Dutch media