US surpasses 700,000 coronavirus cases: tracker

WASHINGTON, United States — The United States on Friday passed 700,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, according to a tally maintained by Johns Hopkins University.

With the highest number of cases and deaths of any country in the world, the US had recorded 700,282 cases of COVID-19 and 36,773 deaths as of 8:30 pm (0030 GMT Friday), according to the Baltimore-based university.

That marked an increase of 3,856 deaths in the past 24 hours, but that figure likely includes "probable" virus-linked deaths, which had not previously been counted.

This week, New York City said it would add 3,778 "probable" virus deaths to its official count.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave a toll Friday night of 33,049 dead, including 4,226 probable virus-linked deaths.

The United States has seen the highest death toll in the world in the coronavirus pandemic, ahead of Italy (22,745 deaths) although its population is just a fifth of that of the US.

Spain has recorded 19,478 deaths, followed by France with 18,681.

Agence France-Presse

US sets new global record with 1,480 virus deaths in 24 hours

WASHINGTON, United States — The United States on Friday advised all Americans to wear masks in public to protect against the new coronavirus, fearing the illness that has infected more than one million people worldwide may be spreading by normal breathing.

The recommendation came as the US set a new record for the number of COVID-19 deaths in one day with 1,480 dead, the most of any country since the pandemic began. That topped the record set by the US the previous day with 1,169 deaths.

President Donald Trump said the government recommendation for all 330 million Americans to wear non-medical masks in places such as grocery stores would last "for a period of time."


"It's going to be really a voluntary thing," Trump told reporters. "You don't have to do it and I'm choosing not to do it, but some people may want to do it and that's okay."

US Surgeon General Jerome Adams said the decision came because many people with the virus were showing no symptoms, but warned it was still vital to practice "social distancing" by maintaining space between people.

The announcement came after Anthony Fauci, who is leading the government's scientific response, backed recent scholarship that found SARS-CoV-2 can be suspended in the ultrafine mist formed when people exhale.

Research indicates "the virus can actually be spread even when people just speak as opposed to coughing and sneezing," Fauci said on Fox News.

The National Academy of Sciences sent a letter to the White House on April 1 summarizing recent research on the subject, saying it's not yet conclusive but "the results ... are consistent with aerosolization of virus from normal breathing."

Since the virus was first identified in China in late December last year, health experts have said it is primarily spread through coughing and sneezing.

The US recommendation will likely worsen an already severe shortage of masks in the United States and Europe, which both rely heavily on imports from China.

Trump urged Americans to "just make something" or use scarves, saving clinical masks for health professionals and patients.

Rising tolls but hope in Europe

More than 57,000 people have died from COVID-19 since it was first detected late last year.

Worse may be coming as a quarter of global infections are in the United States, where Trump has warned of a "very, very painful" first two weeks of April.

Europe reached the dark milestone of 40,000 dead, with Spain on Friday reporting more than 900 deaths in the past 24 hours.

Spaniard Javier Lara survived after being put on oxygen in an overcrowded intensive care unit -- a shock to a 29-year-old who was athletic and doesn't smoke.

"I was panicking that my daughter would get infected," he said, describing facing death with an eight-week-old as the "worst moment" in his life.

But there were also signs the peak may be passing in Europe.

Hardest-hit Italy recorded 766 new deaths but its infections rose by just four percent, the lowest yet, according to the civil protection service.

"It's true that the latest figures, as high as they are, give us a little bit of hope," said Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany.

"But it is definitely much too early to see a clear trend in that, and it is certainly too early to think in any way about relaxing the strict rules we have given ourselves," she added.

'Worst yet to come'

Prosperous countries have borne the brunt of the disease, but there are fears of an explosion among the world's most vulnerable living in conflict zones or refugee camps.

"The worst is yet to come," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, referring to countries such as Syria, Libya and Yemen. "The COVID-19 storm is now coming to all these theaters of conflict."

The world economy has been pummelled by the virus and associated lockdowns, with the US economy shedding 701,000 jobs in March -- its worst showing since March 2009 in the wake of the subprime banking crisis. Even more dire figures are expected for April.

Financial ratings agency Fitch predicted the US and eurozone economies would shrink this quarter by up to 30 percent and the Asian Development Bank warned the global economy could take a $4.1 trillion hit -- equivalent to five percent of worldwide output.

Latin America is heading into a "deep recession" with an expected drop of 1.8 to 4.0 percent in GDP, according to the UN economic commission for the region.

New measures taken

In signs that the world wants to avoid a repeat of the crisis, the African country of Gabon said it was banning the sale and consumption of bats and pangolins, the critically endangered, scaly mammals.

The novel coronavirus is believed to have come from bats, but researchers think it might have spread to humans via another mammal such as pangolins through an unsanitary meat market in Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak in China.

The virus has chiefly killed the elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions, but recent deaths among teenagers and babies have highlighted the dangers for people of all ages.

In Spain, 34-year-old Vanesa Muro gave birth with COVID-19 and has been warned not to touch her newborn without wearing gloves and masks.

"It's hard," she told AFP. "He grabs your finger, the poor little thing, and holds onto the plastic, not on to you."

Agence France-Presse

Fewer virus cases in China, but deaths abroad increase

BEIJING, China — China on Thursday touted a big drop in new virus infections as proof its epidemic control efforts are working, but the toll grew abroad with deaths in Japan and South Korea.

Fatalities in China hit 2,118 as 114 more people died, but health officials reported the lowest number of new cases in nearly a month, including in hardest-hit Hubei province.

More than 74,000 people have been infected by the new coronavirus in China, and hundreds more in over 25 countries.

The number of deaths outside mainland China climbed to 11.

Japan's toll rose to three as a man and a woman in their 80s who had been aboard a quarantined cruise ship died, while fears there mounted over other passengers who disembarked the Diamond Princess after testing negative.

South Korea reported its first death, and the number of infections in the country nearly doubled Thursday to 104.

Iran reported two deaths on Wednesday and three new cases Thursday. Deaths have previously been confirmed in France, the Philippines, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Chinese officials say their drastic containment efforts, including quarantining tens of millions of people in Hubei and restricting movements in cities nationwide, have started to pay off.

Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke by phone about the virus with leaders in South Korea and Pakistan, state news agency Xinhua said.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in "chose to call to express sympathies and support" regarding the outbreak, Xinhua said. Xi told him the epidemic's impact on bilateral ties will only be temporary.

Xi told Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan that their two countries "are true friends and good brothers," and that combating the virus is his government's top priority.

At a special meeting on the virus with Southeast Asian countries in Laos, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said results "show that our control efforts are working."

Although more than 600 new infections were reported Thursday in Hubei's capital Wuhan, it was the lowest daily tally since late January and well down from the 1,749 new cases the day before.

The national figure has  fallen for three straight days.

Chinese authorities placed the city of 11 million under quarantine on January 23 and quickly locked down the rest of the province in the days that followed.

Wuhan authorities this week carried out  door-to-door checks on residents, with the local Communist Party chief warning that officials would be "held accountable" if any infections were missed.

Cities far from the epicentre have limited the number of people who can leave their homes for groceries, while rural villages have sealed off access to outsiders.

'Chaotic' cruise quarantine

In Japan, critics slammed the government's quarantine measures imposed on the Diamond Princess.

The huge vessel moored in Yokohama is the biggest coronavirus cluster outside the Chinese epicentre, with 634 cases confirmed among passengers and crew.

Another 13 people on board the ship were diagnosed with the virus Thursday, Japan's health ministry said.

Still, passengers were disembarking after negative tests and having completed a 14-day quarantine period -- packing into yellow buses and leaving for stations and airports.

An infectious diseases specialist at Kobe University slammed the quarantine procedures on board as "completely chaotic" in rare criticism from a Japanese academic.

"The cruise ship was completely inadequate in terms of infection control," said Kentaro Iwata in videos he has since deleted.

South Korea, meanwhile, announced 51 new cases, with more than 40 in a cluster centred on the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, an entity often seen as a cult.

The infections apparently came from a 61-year-old woman who first developed a fever on February 10 and attended at least four services before being diagnosed.

Authorities were investigating whether she visited a hospital where a long-term patient contracted the virus and later died.

Growing concern abroad

Beyond Asia, citizen backlash was growing over fears of contagion.

Iraq on Thursday clamped down on travel to and from neighboring Iran, with Iraq's health ministry announcing people in Iran were barred from entering the country "until further notice."

The move came after Iran confirmed three new coronavirus cases following the deaths of two elderly men.

And in Ukraine, a crowd clashed with police outside a hospital over government plans to quarantine evacuees from coronavirus-hit China at the site.

Six buses with the evacuees arrived at the medical center in Novi Sanzhary, in the central Poltava region, escorted by police.

Angry  demonstrators lit fires and pelted the buses with rocks, breaking at least three windows.

Because of the virus outbreak, airlines operating in the Asia-Pacific region stand to lose a combined $27.8 billion of revenue, the International Air Transport Association said.

This is the first time since 2003 that demand for air travel has declined, IATA CEO Alexandre de Juniac said. — with Miwa Suzuki in Tokyo

Agence France-Presse

China sees drop in new virus cases, two Japan cruise passengers die

BEIJING, China — China reported a big drop in new coronavirus cases on Thursday, fuelling hopes the epidemic is nearing its peak, but Japan faced a growing crisis as two passengers from a quarantined cruise ship died.

The death toll rose in China hit 2,118 as 114 more people died, but health officials reported the lowest number of new cases there in nearly a month, including in the hardest-hit province, Hubei.

More than 74,000 people have been infected in China and hundreds more in some 25 countries, with Iran reporting two deaths, the first fatalities in the Middle East.

In Japan, a man and a woman in their 80s who had been aboard the Diamond Princess have died, local media reported, citing a government source.

A World Health Organization official noted the progress in China but warned it had not reached a turning point just yet.

Chinese officials said this week that their drastic containment efforts, including quarantining tens of millions of people in Hubei and restricting movements in other cities nationwide, have started to pay off.

"After arduous efforts, the situation is changing for the better," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a meeting with Southeast Asian counterparts in Laos late Wednesday, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

Hubei and its capital Wuhan -- where the virus is believed to have emerged in December -- are still "severely affected" by the epidemic, Wang said.

"But the situation is under effective control, while other regions are embracing comforting news," he said.

'Not turning point'

More than 600 new infections were reported in Wuhan -- the lowest daily tally since late January, and well down from the 1,749 new cases the day before.

The national figure has now fallen for three days in a row.

Chinese authorities placed Wuhan, a city of 11 million people, under quarantine on January 23 and quickly locked down the rest of Hubei in the days that followed.

Cities far from the epicentre have limited the number of people who can leave their houses for groceries, while villages have sealed themselves off from outsiders.

Richard Brennan, regional emergency director at the World Health Organization, said China was making "tremendous progress in a short period of time" but cautioned that it was not over just yet.

"Trends are very encouraging but we are not at a turning point yet," Brennan told a press conference in Cairo.

'Chaotic' cruise quarantine

While China touts progress in its fight against the COVID-19 epidemic, Japan's government faces criticism over quarantine measures on the Diamond Prince cruise ship.

The huge vessel moored in Yokohama is easily the biggest coronavirus cluster outside the Chinese epicentre, with 621 positive cases confirmed among the passengers and crew -- one sixth of the total.

On Wednesday, 443 passengers disembarked from the ship after testing negative for the COVID-19 virus and not showing symptoms during a 14-day quarantine period. The complete removal of the passengers was expected to last at least three days.

More passengers left the ship on Thursday, packing into yellow buses and leaving for stations and airports.

But questions are increasingly being asked as to the wisdom of allowing former Diamond Princess passengers to roam freely around Japan's crowded cities, even if they have tested negative.

The death of the two elderly passengers is likely to add to the criticism.

A specialist in infectious diseases at Kobe University slammed "completely chaotic" quarantine procedures onboard, in rare criticism from a Japanese official.

"The cruise ship was completely inadequate in terms of infection control," said Kentaro Iwata in videos he has since deleted.

Japan's health ministry insisted it had conducted "consultations on appropriate infection control in the ship" with experts and taken a range of measures.

Agence France-Presse

Australia virus evacuees head for island quarantine

SYDNEY, Australia —  A flight carrying evacuees from the epicenter of the deadly China virus outbreak landed in Australia late Monday ahead of a 14-day quarantine at a notorious offshore immigration detention center.

The Qantas charter flight carrying 243 passengers—including 89 children—touched down at an Air Force base near the remote Western Australian town of Exmouth.

The Australian citizens and permanent residents on board were due to be flown in smaller planes to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the Indian Ocean.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the flight was late leaving Wuhan due to a "very intensive process to manage the immigration and boarding arrangements" that also included medical checks.

Passengers will be quarantined for at least 14 days in an immigration detention center which gained notoriety as the venue where asylum seekers who attempted to reach Australia by boat were detained.

Officials say the evacuees will be held separately from a Sri Lankan family of four fighting their deportation—the only other residents of the facility.

"The plan is to cohort people in small family groups so that there won't be a full mingling, so that the whole group doesn't have to stay if someone does get unwell," chief medical officer Brendan Murphy said.

Australia is just the latest country to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan. Japan, the United States and France are among those that have already sent extraction flights.

Payne said the government was considering sending a second plane to Wuhan to evacuate more than around 300 other Australians.

Australia is also in talks with Pacific nations to help evacuate their citizens, but Payne said any foreign nationals that traveled on an Australian charter flight would also need to be quarantined on Christmas Island.

The virus has infected more than 14,000 people in China and killed more than 360. It has spread to more than 24 countries including Australia, where health officials have so far confirmed 12 cases.

Australia on Saturday barred non-citizens travelling from mainland China from entering the country for at least two weeks, while Qantas said it would suspend flights to Shanghai and Beijing starting February 9.

philstar.com

China sees deadliest day yet as global virus fears mount

WUHAN, China — China reported its biggest single-day jump in novel coronavirus deaths on Thursday, as confirmation that three Japanese evacuated from the outbreak's epicentre were infected deepened fears about a global contagion.

The World Health Organization, which initially downplayed the severity of a disease that has now killed 170 nationwide, warned all governments to be "on alert" as it weighed whether to declare a global health emergency.


As foreign countries evacuated their citizens from Wuhan, the locked-down city where the virus was first detected, concern over the economic impact has steadily intensified.

Airlines have suspended services to China and companies from Starbucks to Tesla have shuttered stores and production lines.

Chinese authorities have taken extraordinary steps to arrest the virus's spread, including effectively locking down more than 50 million people in Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province.



But that was yet to pay dividends, with the government reporting 38 new deaths in the 24 hours to Thursday, the highest one-day total. All but one were in Hubei.

The number of confirmed new cases also grew steadily to 7,711, the National Health Commission said. Another 81,000 people were under observation for possible infection.

The pathogen is believed to have been spawned in a market that sold wild game, spreading far and wide by a Lunar New Year holiday season in which hundreds of millions of Chinese travel domestically or abroad.

'Totally new situation'

Japan's infection rate grew to 11 after three Japanese citizens among more than 200 on an evacuation flight Wednesday tested positive.

Officials had already confirmed two cases in which patients tested positive without having travelled to China, adding to anxiety over human-to-human transmission of the respiratory disease.

"We are in a truly new situation," Health Minister Katsunobu Kato told parliament.

The fact that two of the three new confirmed Japanese cases showed no symptoms underscored the scale of the challenge for health workers.

The WHO has come under fire after it last week declined to declare a global health emergency.

The global health body's chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed regret for what he called a "human error" in the WHO's assessment.

WHO's Emergency Committee will meet Thursday to decide whether to declare an emergency -- which could lead to travel or trade barriers.

"The whole world needs to take action," Michael Ryan, head of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, told reporters in Geneva.

A US charter flight from Wuhan arrived Wednesday at a California military base with nearly 200 consular staff and other Americans, who "cheered loudly" when the jet touched down, said an official with US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

All passengers were declared symptom-free but will remain isolated for days while they are monitored.

Some 250 French citizens and 100 other Europeans will be flown out of Wuhan on board two French planes this week.

Australia plans to house any citizens it evacuates from the city on an island normally used to detain asylum seekers.

A growing number of governments -- including the United States, Britain and Germany -- have advised their citizens to avoid non-essential travel to China.

China also has urged its own citizens to delay trips abroad, after more than 15 countries confirmed infections.

Flights scrapped, stores closed

Major airlines that have suspended or pared back service to China include British Airways, German flag carrier Lufthansa, American Airlines, KLM, and United.

China efforts to halt the virus have seen the suspension of classes nationwide and an extension of the Lunar New Year holiday.

Most street traffic in and around Wuhan has been banned.

"This is the first day since the lockdown that I've had to go out," a man in his 50s told AFP on the mostly deserted streets of the industrial city.

"I have no choice because I need to buy food."

China's football body meanwhile said it was postponing "all levels and all types of football matches across the country", including the country's top-tier Chinese Super League, in response to the outbreak.

Economic worries

Japanese automaker Toyota, Swedish furniture giant IKEA, tech giant Foxconn, Starbucks, Tesla and McDonald's were among major corporate giants to temporarily freeze production or close large numbers of outlets in China.

As the "world's factory", the disruptions in China are expected to send ripples through supply chains globally, denting profits.

US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the new coronavirus posed a fresh risk to a fragile world economy, adding that the US central bank was on alert.

"There will clearly be implications at least in the near term for Chinese output and I would guess for some of their close neighbours," Powell said.

The contagion has spread to nearly every corner of China, with remote Tibet reporting its first case on Thursday.

It has triggered fears in part due to its striking similarity to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak of 2002-03, which also began in China and eventually killed nearly 800 people worldwide.

source: philstar.com