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Coronavirus live updates: first two patients in UK test positive Coronavirus live updates: first two patients in UK test positive
(32 minutes later)
Death toll reaches 213 as World Health Organization declares a global emergency Worldwide death toll reaches 213 as World Health Organization declares a global emergency
Here is the full statement from Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, on the first two confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK. Thailand has had its first case of human-to-human transmission of the new coronavirus inside the country, Reuters reports.
The first patient to contract the virus inside Thailand is a Thai taxi driver, said Tanarak Pipat, the deputy director general of the department of disease Control. “(He) … does not have the record of traveling to China, and it is likely that he was infected (by) a sick traveller from China,” Tanarak said.
Authorities have conducted virus scans on 13 people, including three family members, with whom the taxi driver came into contact. They said initially none of them had tested positive.
“The overall risk of infection in Thailand is still low, but people should take precautions to protect themselves,” Tanarak said.
The taxi driver is one of five new coronavirus cases confirmed in Thailand on Friday. Seven of the 19 cases have recovered and gone home while 12 are still being treated at hospitals. All but two of the cases are Chinese tourists visiting the country, the health authority said.
Scientists have been giving their reactions to the first diagnoses of coronavirus in the UK. The general consensus appears to be that it is not a surprise and was only a matter of time until we saw the first cases appear on our shores.
Prof Paul Hunter, Professor in Medicine, University of East Anglia, said:
Prof John Edmunds, Professor in the Centre for the Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said:
Dr Michael Head, Senior Research Fellow in Global Health, University of Southampton, said:
A German military aircraft will shortly be departing for Wuhan to repatriate more than 100 German nationals.
Announcing the plan on Friday, foreign minister Heiko Maas said that none of the German evacuees are infected with the coronavirus or suspected of having contracted it.
Maas said the plane would arrive in Germany on Saturday and the evacuees would be kept in quarantine for two weeks.
This is where approximately 300 Indian students arriving back in their home country from Wuhan will be kept for the next couple of weeks.
Sam Jones, the Guardian’s Madrid correspondent, has some details on the international passengers on the British repatriation flight that took off from China this morning.
The Spanish government said a flight carrying 19 Spanish citizens had left China in the early hours of Friday morning and was due to land outside London at 1.30pm local time.
Spanish citizens will then be flown to Torrejón military airport near Madrid.
The plane is carrying 120 passengers, of whom 19 are Spanish, one is a Polish citizen resident in Spain, and one is a Chinese citizen married to a Spaniard. Two Danish couples and a Norwegian citizen will also be on the plane from the UK to Madrid. Also onboard are 83 British citizens.
The Department of Health has declined to say where in England the patients were from but it is understood they are not in the Wirral area, where a special facility has been set up to quarantine Britons evacuated from Wuhan, in China.The Department of Health has declined to say where in England the patients were from but it is understood they are not in the Wirral area, where a special facility has been set up to quarantine Britons evacuated from Wuhan, in China.
Here’s more from Chris Whitty, emphasising that the NHS is well prepared for a positive test: Here’s more from Chris Whitty, emphasising that the NHS is well-prepared for a positive test:
Two patients in England, who are members of the same family, have tested positive for coronavirus, the chief medical officer for England, Prof Chris Whitty, said.Two patients in England, who are members of the same family, have tested positive for coronavirus, the chief medical officer for England, Prof Chris Whitty, said.
We will bring you more information as it comes in.
Bangladesh is preparing a flight to repatriate more than 340 Bangladeshi citizens in Wuhan, the New Age reports.Bangladesh is preparing a flight to repatriate more than 340 Bangladeshi citizens in Wuhan, the New Age reports.
According to the paper, a wide-body aircraft is to leave Dhaka for Wuhan on Friday evening, after Chinese authorities allotted it a slot to operate a special flight for Bangladeshis stuck in the locked-down city.According to the paper, a wide-body aircraft is to leave Dhaka for Wuhan on Friday evening, after Chinese authorities allotted it a slot to operate a special flight for Bangladeshis stuck in the locked-down city.
Zahid Maleque, the health minister, said on Thursday Bangladesh was “fully prepared” to tackle coronavirus, that all passengers arriving in the country from China were being screened, and that so far none had been detected with coronavirus.Zahid Maleque, the health minister, said on Thursday Bangladesh was “fully prepared” to tackle coronavirus, that all passengers arriving in the country from China were being screened, and that so far none had been detected with coronavirus.
An isolation unit has been prepared at Kurmitola General hospital, Maleque said.An isolation unit has been prepared at Kurmitola General hospital, Maleque said.
These pictures from one of the hospitals in Wuhan, the city at the centre of the outbreak, show medical workers resorting to wearing the plastic covers originally used to pack medical supplies because of a shortage of protective gear.These pictures from one of the hospitals in Wuhan, the city at the centre of the outbreak, show medical workers resorting to wearing the plastic covers originally used to pack medical supplies because of a shortage of protective gear.
They have been provided to the Guardian by a doctor working at Wuhan union hospital.They have been provided to the Guardian by a doctor working at Wuhan union hospital.
The publication of the images come amid a row over emergency medical supplies not getting to the correct places.The publication of the images come amid a row over emergency medical supplies not getting to the correct places.
Michael Standaert, who is reporting for the Guardian from China, earlier reported how the Red Cross Society of Hubei has come under fire from Chinese netizens who say the charity is sending high-quality medical grade N95 filtration masks to hospitals that are not at the centre of the outbreak nor fever clinics in the greatest need of masks.Michael Standaert, who is reporting for the Guardian from China, earlier reported how the Red Cross Society of Hubei has come under fire from Chinese netizens who say the charity is sending high-quality medical grade N95 filtration masks to hospitals that are not at the centre of the outbreak nor fever clinics in the greatest need of masks.
The Red Cross subsequently released a statement saying their announcement was mislabelled and it should have said they were KN95 masks, not N95 masks, which is why those other hospitals got them and not the frontline treatment hospitals.The Red Cross subsequently released a statement saying their announcement was mislabelled and it should have said they were KN95 masks, not N95 masks, which is why those other hospitals got them and not the frontline treatment hospitals.
But a chief executive of a company that makes high-quality face masks in China cast doubt on the claim. “To me that sounds like quite the excuse,” he said.But a chief executive of a company that makes high-quality face masks in China cast doubt on the claim. “To me that sounds like quite the excuse,” he said.
“N95 and KN95 uses exactly the same standards. N95 is the CDC NIOSH standard, that’s the US standard. The Chinese standard – the guobiao standard – is called the KN95. In Europe, it is FFP2, it is 94% [filtration] but it is the same standard. All of those standards require the masks to be able to filter out a rate of 95% of particles at peak breath rate.”“N95 and KN95 uses exactly the same standards. N95 is the CDC NIOSH standard, that’s the US standard. The Chinese standard – the guobiao standard – is called the KN95. In Europe, it is FFP2, it is 94% [filtration] but it is the same standard. All of those standards require the masks to be able to filter out a rate of 95% of particles at peak breath rate.”
Students at Melbourne’s Monash university have been told to stay away from campus until mid-March, in an effort by its administrators avoid the spread of coronavirus among its student community.Students at Melbourne’s Monash university have been told to stay away from campus until mid-March, in an effort by its administrators avoid the spread of coronavirus among its student community.
The 83,000 students who study across Monash’s six campuses had been expecting to return from their summer holidays on 2 March, but the beginning of term has been pushed back to 9 March, with the first week taught online via livestreamed lectures. Campus will not be opened for lectures and seminars until 16 March.The 83,000 students who study across Monash’s six campuses had been expecting to return from their summer holidays on 2 March, but the beginning of term has been pushed back to 9 March, with the first week taught online via livestreamed lectures. Campus will not be opened for lectures and seminars until 16 March.
In an email sent to students, seen by Australian newspaper The Age, the deputy vice-chancellor, Prof Susan Elliott, said:In an email sent to students, seen by Australian newspaper The Age, the deputy vice-chancellor, Prof Susan Elliott, said:
A doctor has become the sixth patient diagnosed with coronavirus in France, the country’s health chief Jérôme Salomon announced on Thursday night.A doctor has become the sixth patient diagnosed with coronavirus in France, the country’s health chief Jérôme Salomon announced on Thursday night.
The patient confined himself after first developing symptoms, and is currently in hospital in Paris, where is condition is said to be not a cause for concern, Le Parisien reports.The patient confined himself after first developing symptoms, and is currently in hospital in Paris, where is condition is said to be not a cause for concern, Le Parisien reports.
The French health directorate says it is the first reported case of contamination on French soil.The French health directorate says it is the first reported case of contamination on French soil.
This is Damien Gayle taking over the live blog from London now, where it is morning. As usual, please send me any coronavirus-related information, tips, questions or stories that you think we should be covering and I’ll do my best to get them in. You can reach me via email at damien.gayle@theguardian.com or via my Twitter profile, @damiengayle.
The death toll stands at 213 inside China and confirmed infections are at nearly 9,100.
Global infections are up to 130.
The US has upgraded its travel advice to “do not travel” to China.
A flight carrying 83 Britons and 27 foreign nationals is on its way home from Wuhan, due to arrive in the UK at around 1pm local time.
The World Health Organization has declared the virus outbreak a global emergency.
South Korea evacuated more than 350 of its citizens from Wuhan on an plane and may schedule up to three more flights. It confirmed its seventh case of coronavirus on Friday.
Italy confirms its first two cases of the virus.
Japan has changed it’s travel advice to China, urging citizens to avoid non-urgent trips.
More international airlines have curtailed flights to China, including Virgin Atlantic and Kenya Airways.
Here’s more information on New Zealand’s planned evacuation of its citizens from Wuhan.
The NZ foreign affairs ministry says “it may not be possible for New Zealand permanent residents, who are Chinese citizens, to be on the flight. It should be noted that some permanent residents from other countries on other assisted departure flights have been unable to board.”
There is no departure date set for the flight. New Zealand has offered to take Australians and Pacific Islands citizens on the flight, along with New Zealand citizens.
“Australians aboard the plane would be picked up by their own government at the point of arrival in New Zealand,” the ministry says. “Any other nationalities aboard the plane would be placed in isolation in New Zealand before travel arrangements to return to their home country are made.”
New Zealand is yet to announce where the passengers will be held in isolation.
A suspected case of coronavirus has been detected in New Zealand, the ministry of health said.
A test had been ordered but the results would not be available until Saturday local time, said Dr Ashley Bloomfield, New Zealand’s most senior medical officer.
The patient is being held at Auckland hospital. So far no confirmed cases of the virus have been discovered in New Zealand, though authorities have repeatedly said it is only a matter of time.
“The normal management of someone who is a suspected case of an infectious disease like this is that they have a special isolation room in the hospital” Dr Bloomfield said. Planning is under way to get about 150 New Zealanders out of Wuhan, with the flight likely to happen over the weekend local time. They will be charged $500 for a seat on the flight. It was not yet known where the arrivals from Wuhan would be held, though it was likely somewhere in Auckland.
“What we’re really interested in doing is identifying any suspected cases, confirming whether or not they are cases and then stopping any other transmission” Bloomfield said.
Two cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Italy. The prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, said late on Thursday that two Chinese tourists were being treated at Rome’s Lazzari Spallanzani national institute for infectious diseases.
“The Spallanzani is the bible in this sector, there is no reason for panic or alarm,” Conte said. He added that close checks were being carried out to trace the tourists’ movements in Italy in order “to absolutely avoid any additional risk”.
Flights between China and Italy have been stopped, Conte said. The couple are reported to be from Wuhan and arrived in Milan on 23 January. Meanwhile, tests carried out on two Chinese tourists onboard a cruise ship in the port city of Civitavecchia were negative, the cruise company, Costa Crociere, said in a statement on Thursday night.
China’s banks have put into place some emergency measures learned from the 2003 Sars outbreak ahead of when they reopen for business after the extended new year and virus-induced break on Monday, Reuters are reporting.
While many workers are being told to stay at home and businesses are remaning closed for another week to contain the contagion, banks are deemed too important to remain closed so will trade again on Monday in the financial hub of Shanghai. Some staff will be allowed to work from home to minimise contact, Reuters says, but traders will have to go into their offices. A system of shifts deployed during the Sars epidemic will be used to provide enough cover.
South Korea’s health ministry said on Friday that the Korean staple dish of kimchi, made from fermented cabbage, chilli peppers and garlic, would provide no protection against the new type of coronavirus originating from China.
The Associated Press reports that ministry’s statement sought to correct misunderstandings about the illness and calm public fears. The ministry also said eating kimchi imported from China wouldn’t necessarily put a person at greater risk of infection.
The ministry says the best protection against the virus, which is spread through close personal contact and droplet infection, is to wash hands frequently.
During the SARS epidemic of 2003, some South Korean researchers claimed that kimchi possibly explained the country’s relatively low number of cases, saying that a type of bacteria created during the fermentation process would have been helpful in fighting off infections.
While such claims reportedly led to a boost in kimchi sales across Asia, most experts saw the argument as dubious.
Kenya Airways has suspended all flights to and from China until further notice.
“We have temporarily suspended all flights to and from Guangzhou starting Friday until further notice,” the airline said in a statement on its Twitter account.
We’ve reported over the past few days about the effort to build two brand new hospitals in Wuhan to accomodate coronavirus patients. The time-lapse footage below shows the monumental scale of the build.
The Red Cross Society of Hubei has come under fire from Chinese netizens who say the charity is sending high quality medical grade N95 filtration masks to hospitals that are not at the epicentre of the outbreak nor fever clinics in the greatest need of masks, writes Michael Standaert.
According to the first statistics released by the Hubei Red Cross on Thursday, the group released only 3,000 of the N95 masks to Wuhan Union Hospital, one of the hospitals most impacted by the outbreak and surge of patients.
Those stats showed out of 36,000 of the medical-grade masks, 16,000 went to Wuhan Ren’ai Hospital and 16,000 to Wuhan Tianyou Hospital, both private hospitals, with the rest to the other that people are saying is in the most need.
Cover News has now reported that the Hubei Red Cross is investigating why the masks were distributed to those two hospitals.
“Thats very funny because [everyone in Wuhan] knows it and they need to look into it?” Jing Xian [nickname], a man from Wuhan currently stuck in the city during the lockdown, but who normally resides in Shenzhen. “I’m angry, it’s ridiculous.”
“When I was a kid, we all know Ren’ai is a hospital for women and it is a private hospital with a bad reputation,” he said. “So many people are so helpless and hopeless.”
Posts from people expressing anger about the distribution of the masks to the two hospitals that appeared in the morning are now being censored with a message saying: The content is suspected of violating relevant rules