NEWS//China's mystery illness
A mystery illness appeared in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December.
For information updated on January 27, scroll below this article.
Pneumonia-like symptoms
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It appears to be a strain of pneumonia caused by a coronavirus. Authorities have warned citizens to be on the lookout for symptoms like fever, difficulty breathing or body ache.
Medical researchers have slowly pieced together facts about this new virus. The source of the infection is not yet known.
Why has this disease attracted so much attention? The disease has raised the specter of the Sars outbreak in 2002-2004. At the time, SARS killed several hundred people after it started in China and spread around the globe. (Read more here.)
Mass infection possible
Concerns about the disease spreading are heightened because of the New Year/Spring Festival (January 25-February 8). Most people in China travel during this two-week holiday. For that reason, a number of cities in China, including Wuhan and its suburbs, have been quarantined.
Source unknown
The cluster of people originally struck by this disease is centered at the Wuhan South China Seafood City. (It is also called the South China Seafood Wholesale Market and the Hua Nan Seafood Market). The market has been closed since January 1, 2020, for cleaning and disinfection. Some patients worked at a seafood market there. Several shops at the market also sold wild animals including birds, snakes, deer, groundhogs, according to Chinese media reports. That raises the possibility of animal-to-human transmission, in addition to human-to-human transmission.
The World Health Organization claims that the Wuhan coronavirus is not yet a public health emergency of international concern. See more information here.
Sources: The Guardian, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CBS News, Daily Advertiser, NetEase.
UPDATE - January 27, 2020 (New York Times)
Coronavirus outbreak intensifies
The death toll in China from the respiratory illness rose to at least 80 today, and the government extended the Lunar New Year holiday by three days in an effort to limit travel. Here are the latest updates.
A top Chinese health official warned on Sunday that the virus’s spread was accelerating despite a lockdown affecting 56 million people. The quarantine could make the situation worse, including by exacerbating shortages of medical supplies.
The details: Most of the nearly 3,000 people who have contracted the virus live in China, but it has spread to 10 other countries. Five cases have been confirmed in the U.S.
Go deeper: Compared with China’s response to the SARS epidemic in the early 2000s, the government has responded faster to the current outbreak. But there are signs that officials, especially those at the regional level, were slow to recognize the danger and are continuing to mishandle the crisis.
Another angle: Many airlines are accommodating travelers who want to modify, delay or cancel China itineraries. Here’s what to expect.