Coronavirus outbreak: Global death toll passes 3,000 mark
China says it has recorded 42 new deaths from the new coronavirus afflicting the country and the world, bringing the total global death toll to over 3,000.
China’s National Health Commission also confirmed 202 new infections and 141 new suspected cases on Sunday.
All the new deaths took place inside Hubei Province, the epicenter of the outbreak. And of the new confirmed cases, only six were outside Hubei.
The new figure brought the total number of the deaths inside China to 2,912.
A total of 44,462 patients had so far been discharged from hospital after recovery, according to the commission.
US records 2nd death
Meanwhile, the United States confirmed its second death from the virus, known as COVID-19, in the Seattle area.
The victim, a man in his 70s with underlying health conditions, died on Saturday at an EvergreenHealth Hospital. The facility is the one in the Washington State where officials reported the country’s first death on Saturday.
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Three other cases of infection were also confirmed in the US, all of whom were hospitalized at EvergreenHealth.
New York State also reported its first case of COVID-19 infection, and Florida declared a state of emergency to contain the outbreak.
As of Sunday night, 88 cases had been identified in the US.
While health officials have warned of the seriousness of the outbreak, President Donald Trump has attempted to downplay it. At a rally on Friday, he blamed the media and Democrats for hyping up the contagion.
The Trump administration has come under fire for the handling of the outbreak. Health experts say the administration is still sending mixed messages about a growing public health crisis.
“It undermines public trust,” said Georges Benjamin, the executive director of the American Public Health Association. “This isn’t well-coordinated.”
South Korea cases surpass 4,000
South Korea, which has the highest number of infected people outside China, declared 476 new cases on Monday.
The sharp rise in the number of cases took the country’s tally to 4,212 on Monday.
The death toll also rose to 22, after four people died of the disease on Sunday, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
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Indonesia reports two cases
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Monday that two Indonesian nationals had tested positive for the virus after coming into contact with an infected Japanese national.
President Widodo also said that the infected people were being treated at an infectious diseases hospital in the capital, Jakarta.
The two were the first confirmed cases in the world’s fourth most populous country, with a population of more than 260 million people.
The World Health Organization has said the virus appears to particularly hit those over the age of 60 and people already weakened by other illnesses.
Kuwait reports 10 more cases
Kuwait’s Health Ministry announced 10 new cases of the virus infection on Monday, bringing the country’s total tally to 56.
A ministry official also called on citizens to avoid public gatherings to avoid further spreading the disease.
Vietnam suspends visa-free travel for Italians
As the novel coronavirus infections continue to spike across Europe, with Italy becoming the virus hotspot in the continent, the Vietnamese government said it would temporarily suspend visa-free travel for Italians.
The government said the suspension would take effect from Tuesday “amid fast rising COVID-19 infections in the European country.”
Italy reported hundreds of new cases and five deaths on Sunday.
France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the Czech Republic have also confirmed new cases.
More cases reported in Japan
Japanese health officials confirmed five more cases of infection in Hokkaido, bringing the total number in the country to 77.
Hokkaido, an island in north Japan with a population of about 5 million people, declared a state of emergency on Friday. As of Sunday, Japan reported a total number of 206 confirmed cases and six deaths.
Almost all prefectures in the country began shutting schools on Monday, days after Prime Minter Shinzo Abe asked for the closure of schools for a month to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Australia confirms community transmission
Australia on Monday reported the first cases of community transmissions, after a woman and a male doctor tested positive for the new coronavirus.
Health officials said it was not clear how the doctor, 31 years old, had contracted the virus. The woman, 41, though was infected after her brother returned to the country from Iran, officials said.
Australia has restricted the entry of foreigners from China and Iran, but the government says travel curbs can only serve to slow the number of new infections.
