Coronavirus outbreak LIVE Updates: Death toll crosses 1,500 in China; 3rd Indian onboard Japan ship tests positive

Coronavirus outbreak LIVE: Earlier, two Indians had tested positive. The Indian embassy, however, said it is in touch with all three Indians, who are crew members of the ship, and reported that their condition is improving and is stable.




Coronavirus outbreak Live Updates: The number of deaths due to the COVID-19 mounted to 1,523 in China after the country’s National Health Commission reported 143 new deaths on Saturday morning. With 2,641 more people contracting the disease in the last one day, the total number of cases rose to 66,492. COVID-19 stems from a new form of coronavirus and has spread from China’s Wuhan province to more than 24 countries since December.

Meanwhile, one more Indian national on the cruise ship off the Japanese coast has tested positive for coronavirus, the Indian embassy confirmed. Earlier, two Indians had tested positive. The embassy said it was in touch with all three Indians, who are crew members of the ship, and reported that their condition is stable and improving.

International Business Machines Corp on Friday said it had canceled its participation in the RSA cyber security conference due to coronavirus-related concerns. The event is scheduled to take place Feb. 24–28 in San Francisco. The Chinese gymnastics team, which had entered into next week’s World Cup in Melbourne, has also pulled out due to Australian government travel restrictions put in place to limit the coronavirus outbreak, organisers said on Saturday.
The restrictions on foreign nationals travelling from China were introduced in early February and extended for another week on Thursday.

Coronavirus outbreak Live Updates: Death toll crosses 1,500 in China; 3rd Indian in Japanese cruise ship tests positive; Chinese gymnasts pulls out of World Cup; Follow latest updates in the space below.

Highlights

Over nine days, Chinese authorities had announced a consistent decline in the confirmed number of new cases of COVID-2019 (the disease caused by the novel coronavirus) outside of Hubei province. On Wednesday, however, the province itself, which has been the epicentre of the outbreak, recorded a sharp spike in the number of newly confirmed cases and deaths. Over nine days, Chinese authorities had announced a consistent decline in the confirmed number of new cases of COVID-2019 (the disease caused by the novel coronavirus) outside of Hubei province. On Wednesday, however, the province itself, which has been the epicentre of the outbreak, recorded a sharp spike in the number of newly confirmed cases and deaths. What explains this? Read here

The Chinese gymnastics team, which had entered into next week’s World Cup in Melbourne, has pulled out due to Australian government travel restrictions put in place to limit the coronavirus outbreak, Reuters quoted organisers as saying on Saturday. The restrictions on foreign nationals travelling from China were introduced in early February and extended for another week on Thursday. “It has been a very challenging few weeks for us all, but none more so than for the Chinese gymnasts and officials who have been training and preparing to come to Melbourne,” Gymnastics Australia CEO Kitty Chiller said in a statement.

Hawaii health authorities began a search on Friday for anyone who may have had close contact with a Japanese tourist who fell ill on the island of Oahu and tested positive for a new coronavirus soon after returning to his home country, news agency Reuters reported. The case came to public attention at a Honolulu news conference by Governor David Ige and senior state health officials, who said the man in question is believed to have become infected in Japan before embarking on his trip, or while en route to Hawaii. That assumption is based on the 14-day incubation period of the virus, and the fact that the man became symptomatic after less than a week in Hawaii, the state health officials said.

Saturday marked the second day the number of new coronavirus fell since Thursday when China’s Hubei province began including clinical diagnoses in its official count. Using the wider scope of classification, the province reported 15,152 cases, including 13,332 that were diagnosed using doctors’ analyses and lung imaging, as opposed to the prior standard of laboratory testing. Hubei health authorities said in the notice that the new method was adopted to facilitate earlier treatment for those suspected of infection.

A Chinese national, who was kept under observation at Naidu hospital in Pune after he had vomited on a Delhi-Pune flight, and was discharged recently after testing negative for the coronavirus, has written to Maharashtra health authorities to thank them for being helpful and ensuring that everything was well managed. In his message, he wrote that he had been nervous as he was not sure about the hospital facilities and the language barrier. “However, everyone was very helpful… Everything is quite well-managed including food, cleaning and nursing service. It is an isolation facility but it does not really feel like one. So again, thanks everyone,” he wrote, as per officials.

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