Coronavirus outbreak: woman test positive after Diamond Princess landing – real time news | World news

Asked Friday if new cases put the crisis at a critical point, the director general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said that “the window of opportunity is narrowing, so we must act quickly before it closes completely” .

My colleagues Sarah Boseley, Hannah Devlin and Martin Belam answered questions about the virus. Here is a selection of these, including if we should panic:

What is Covid-19 – the disease that started in Wuhan?

It is caused by a member of the coronavirus family that has never been seen before. Like other coronaviruses, it comes from animals. Many of those initially infected worked or were often purchased in the Huanan seafood wholesale market in the center of the Chinese city.

What are the symptoms that this coronavirus causes?

The virus can cause pneumonia. Those who have fallen ill are accused of coughing, fever and breathing difficulties. In severe cases there may be organ failure. Since it is viral pneumonia, antibiotics are unnecessary. The antiviral drugs we have against the flu won’t work. Recovery depends on the strength of the immune system. Many of those who died were already in poor health.

Should I go to the doctor if I have a cough?

British Chief Medical Officers are informing anyone who has traveled to the United Kingdom from mainland China, Thailand, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia or Macau in the past 14 days and is suffering cough or fever or shortness of breath to stay indoors and call NHS 111, even if the symptoms are mild.

Is the epidemic a pandemic?

A pandemic, in terms of the WHO, is “the worldwide spread of a disease”. Coronavirus cases have been confirmed outside of China, but in no way in all 195 countries on the WHO list. Furthermore, it is not currently spreading in those countries, except in very few cases. Most of the cases are travelers who have collected the virus in China.

Should we panic?

No. The spread of the virus outside of China is worrying but not unexpected. WHO has stated that the epidemic is a public health emergency of international concern. The key issues are the transmissibility of this new coronavirus among people and what percentage falls seriously ill and ends up in the hospital. Often viruses that spread easily tend to have a milder impact. In general, coronavirus appears to affect older people more severely, with few cases in children.

In the fourth largest city in South Korea, Daegu, 90 new cases were confirmed on Sunday, bringing the city total to 247.

More than half of the people who have confirmed that they have been infected are either – or are connected – to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a secret religious sect with a strong presence in Daegu.

The mayor asked all Shincheonji members with symptoms to come forward and be tested, with hundreds yet to be reached by the authorities.

Moon described the situation in Daegu and Cheongdo – the birthplace of Shincheonji founder Lee Man-hee – as a “national crisis”, adding that cities will receive “full support” for scarce medical resources and staff.

Shincheonji, accused of being a cult by traditional Christian groups, claims that its founder wore the cloak of Jesus Christ and will bring 144,000 people to heaven on the day of judgment.

But with more church members than places available in heaven, they are said to compete for slots and pursue converts.

In a video statement read by his spokesman, Shincheonji apologized for “causing concern”, but insisted that he was collaborating with health authorities on the “early termination” of the situation.

The spokesman refuted public criticism by blaming his church for the spike in the number of infections, noting that the virus had erupted in China. “Please be aware that the Shincheonji Church of Jesus and its members are the biggest victims of COVID-19,” he said.

President Moon Jae-in said South Korea raised the alert level for the new coronavirus to its highest level in the face of a sudden spike in the number of infections.

“The Covid-19 accident is facing a serious turn. The next few days will be crucial, “Moon said following a government meeting.

“The government will raise the alert level to the highest level according to expert recommendations,” he added.

South Korea has seen a rapid increase in the number of coronavirus cases in the past few days after a group of infections emerged from a religious sect in the southern city of Daegu last week.

The national toll of 556 cases is now the highest outside of China, apart from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan.

A dozen cities in northern Italy were in fact blocked on Saturday after the death of two people infected with coronavirus from China.

In some Lombard and Veneto cities, schools, businesses and restaurants have closed. The mayor of Milan, the Italian business capital and the capital of Lombardy, has closed public offices.

A 78-year-old man infected with the coronavirus died in Veneto, and a post-mortem performed on a 77-year-old woman in Lombardy came back positive, although it was unclear whether the disease caused by the virus caused his death.

On Saturday, civil protection officials reported that 79 people had contracted the virus, including two dead and one who had recovered. Of the remaining 76 infected, 54 were in Lombardy, 17 in Veneto, two in Emilia-Romagna, two – a Chinese couple from Wuhan – in Lazio and one in Piedmont.

It comes amid a growing group of cases in the country with no direct connection to the origin of the epidemic abroad.

The authorities of the Lombard government have stated that the cases in the region are attributable to a 38-year-old Italian who had not traveled to China, but it is not clear how this man was infected. Ten Lombard municipalities have received orders to suspend non-essential activities and services.

Luca Zaia, president of the Veneto region, said on Saturday that the infection showed that the virus was transmitted as a flu and that trying to identify a single source for the cases or establish a link with China were no longer effective containment measures.