Wuhan virus: Malaysia confirms first 3 cases; all patients related to Chinese national who was Singapore's first case

Asia

Wuhan virus: Malaysia confirms first 3 cases; all patients related to Chinese national who was Singapore's first case

KLIA wuhan virus screening
A Malaysian health officer screens arriving passengers with a thermal scanner at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. (Photo: AFP)
By D Kanyakumari
(Updated: )

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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia on Saturday (Jan 25) said it had confirmed three cases of coronavirus infection, the first in the Southeast Asian country.
Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said the three individuals infected were related to the 66-year-old man that was confirmed by Singaporean health authorities to have tested positive for the virus.
On Friday, Malaysia’s Deputy Health Minister Lee Boon Chye said eight Chinese nationals who were in close contact with the first person to test positive for the Wuhan coronavirus in Singapore had entered Malaysia and were being quarantined in a hotel in Johor Bahru.
The three infected patients are now being monitored at the Sungai Buloh hospital in Kuala Lumpur. 
“The three here are the wife, 65, and two grandchildren (ages 2 and 11) of the man tested positive in Singapore,” said Dr Dzulkefly.
He added the eight people were transferred from Johor to Sungai Buloh hospital because the testing for the virus was carried out at the National Public Health Laboratory, which is situated there.  

READ: Wuhan virus outbreak - At a glance

In explaining the chain of events, Dr Dzulkefly said the family had travelled from Guangzhou to Singapore on Jan 22. 
“The 66-year old man and his son who showed symptoms and were tested positive for the virus in Singapore were then admitted to the hospital there," he said. 
“Our ministry was alerted by the Singapore Health Ministry that nine other people travelled with the 66-year old. These were his wife, his son (who was tested positive in Singapore), daughter-in-law, two grandchildren and another family of four.  
“We were then able to reach out to the remaining eight who had made their way to Johor Bahru,” he said. 
Malaysia wuhan virus presser
Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad (second right) with the Health director general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (third from right) and director for disease control division Dr Norhayati Rusli looking at systems monitoring the spread of the virus. (Photo: D Kanyakumari)

He explained that all eight who were asymptomatic had to undergo throat swabs and that the samples were sent to the National Public Health Laboratory.
While five people, including the mother of the two infected children, tested negative. 
“Four of the five tested negative have been sent back to China while the mother of the two children is staying back to look after her family," he said.  
Separately, Dr Dzulkefly said there has been a total of 11 suspected cases of new coronavirus in Malaysia. 
“Of that, 10 has been confirmed negative while one who is a Malaysian with a travel history to China has been admitted to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital and is awaiting laboratory test results.
“From the total 11, eight were Malaysians, two were Chinese nationals and one was a Jordanian,” he said. 
Speaking on the growing concern of the spread of the virus, Dr Dzulkefly said he has spoken to the Home Ministry as well as the Prime Minister on blocking Malaysians from leaving to China. 
“As it stands, flights to Wuhan has been cancelled and we are discussing possibilities of having all flights to China cancelled,” he said. 
The newly identified coronavirus can cause pneumonia, which has been deadly in some cases. It is still too early to know just how dangerous it is and how easily it spreads between people. 
On Saturday, authorities in China announced the number of cases had surged to nearly 1,300 - the majority of which were in Hubei.
Health officials in the province also revealed that 15 new deaths took place in Wuhan, bringing the total number of fatalities to 41 since the outbreak began. 
The disease has spread to 30 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.
Wuhan and 13 other cities in Hubei have been locked down in an unprecedented quarantine effort aimed at containing the deadly respiratory contagion, which has spread to several other countries.

MORE: Our coverage of the Wuhan virus and its developments

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Source: CNA/rw
Asia

Wuhan virus death toll hits 41 as cases soar to nearly 1,300 in China

Wuhan virus temperature checks
A police officer checks the temperature of a driver at a highway in Wuhan, in China's central Hubei province, on Jan 24, 2020. (Photo: AFP)
(Updated: )

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WUHAN: A deadly viral outbreak in China has now killed 41 people, while the number of infected cases has soared to nearly 1,300, authorities said Saturday (Jan 25).
The 15 new deaths all took place in Wuhan, the city of 11 million where the deadly respiratory contagion first emerged, the Hubei Health Commission said.
At least 444 new cases of the virus have been found, raising the total number to 1,287, the National Health Commission said in a separate statement.
The disease has spread to 30 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.
Wuhan and 13 other cities in Hubei have been locked down in an unprecedented quarantine effort aimed at containing the deadly respiratory contagion, which has spread to several other countries.
The Hubei Health Commission also reported 180 new cases overall in the province, 77 of them in Wuhan but the bulk of the rest spread out across the locked-down smaller cities. There are now 729 cases in Hubei alone.
Chinese state media also announced the death of a doctor who worked at the front line of the outbreak at a hospital in Hubei. 
Several of those cities were reporting their first cases of the pathogen -- 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) -- the commission said.

READ: Wuhan virus outbreak - At a glance

The newly identified coronavirus has created alarm because there are still many unknowns surrounding it such as how dangerous it is and how easily it spreads between people. It can cause pneumonia, which has been deadly in some cases. 
Symptoms include fever, difficulty breathing and coughing. Most of the fatalities have been in elderly patients, many with pre-existing conditions, the WHO said.
It has caused global concern because of its similarity to SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which killed hundreds across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.
CONFIRMED CASES
PlacesConfirmed CasesReported Deaths
China128741
Thailand50
France30
Malaysia30
Singapore30
Hong Kong20
Japan20
Macau20
South Korea20
United States20
Vietnam20
Australia10
Nepal10
Taiwan10
TOTAL131641
As of 4:20pm Jan 25, 2020

China on Friday imposed transport bans in an area covering a staggering 41 million people, as the United States confirmed its second case of the SARS-like virus that has reached almost a dozen countries.

MORE: Our coverage on the Wuhan virus and its developments

The World Health Organization said China faced a national emergency but stopped short of declaring a global health emergency, which would have prompted greater global cooperation.
The outbreak emerged in late December in Wuhan, an industrial and transport hub of 11 million people in China's centre, spreading to several other countries.
China is in the midst of its Chinese New Year holiday, a typically joyous time of family gatherings and public festivities.
But on Friday Wuhan was a ghost town, its streets deserted and stores shuttered.
As Wuhan slides into isolation, pharmacies have begun to run out of supplies and hospitals have been flooded with nervous residents. The city is rushing to build a 1,000-bed hospital by Monday, state media said.
"It must be confusing and infuriating that on the weekend the government reassured citizens that the virus did not spread between humans and was under control, and then, only four days later, to initiate an unprecedented lockdown of Wuhan and other cities," said Mary Gallagher, director of the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies at the University of Michigan.
Airports around the world have stepped up screening of passengers from China, though some health officials and experts have questioned the effectiveness of such screenings and of the lockdown.
Source: Agencies/rw
Asia

Vast Wuhan virus quarantine in China as cases emerge in Europe, South Asia

Medical staff wearing protective clothing transport supplies
Medical staff wearing protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus which began in the city, transport supplies at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital in Wuhan on Jan 24, 2020. (Photo: AFP/Hector Retamal)
(Updated: )

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WUHAN: A massive quarantine effort covering 13 cities was in effect in China on Saturday (Jan 25) aimed at containing a deadly virus, as the death toll climbed to 41 and the first cases of the disease were reported in Europe and South Asia.
China on Friday imposed transport bans in an area covering a staggering 41 million people, as the United States confirmed its second case of the SARS-like virus that has reached almost a dozen countries.
The virus has also spread to densely populated South Asia, where Nepal confirmed one case, and Europe, where three cases were reported in France.
With more than 800 cases logged in China so far, a range of Chinese New Year festivities have been cancelled, with temporary closures of Beijing's Forbidden City, Shanghai's Disneyland and a section of the Great Wall to prevent the disease from spreading further.
The previously unknown virus has caused alarm because of its similarity to SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which killed hundreds across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.
The World Health Organization said China faced a national emergency but stopped short of declaring a global health emergency, which would have prompted greater global cooperation.
The outbreak emerged in late December in Wuhan, an industrial and transport hub of 11 million people in China's centre, spreading to several other countries.
Australian authorities confirmed its first case on Saturday, after a patient who returned to Melbourne from Wuhan tested positive for the virus. 
In the United States, a woman in Chicago became the second known patient on US soil, with 50 other suspected cases under investigation. A city health official said on Friday the woman was doing well and in stable condition.
Hours after the announcement President Donald Trump thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping via Twitter "on behalf of the American People" for his country's "efforts and transparency" in working to contain the virus. "It will all work out well," Trump wrote.
The first case in South Asia was reported in Nepal on Friday. The 32-year-old male patient, who had arrived from Wuhan, was treated at a hospital in Kathmandu and discharged, officials said.

In photos: Asia ramps up defence against Wuhan virus

And three cases were confirmed in France, the first in Europe. All had recently travelled to China and have been placed in isolation, the country's health minister said.
China is in the midst of its Chinese New Year holiday, a typically joyous time of family gatherings and public festivities.
But on Friday Wuhan was a ghost town, its streets deserted and stores shuttered.
WORRIED PATIENTS
As reports surfaced of bed shortages in Wuhan for the sick, state media said authorities were rushing to build a new hospital only for the outbreak in a mind-blowing 10 days.
Excavators are seen at the construction site where the new hospital is being built to treat patient
Excavators are seen at the construction site where the new hospital is being built to treat patients of a new coronavirus, following the outbreak and the city's lockdown, on the outskirts of Wuhan, China Jan 24, 2020. (Photo: cnsphoto via REUTERS)

Hospitals visited by AFP journalists bustled with worried patients being screened by staff wearing full-body protective suits.
At a temperature-check station, a medical staffer in a bodysuit, face mask and goggles took a thermometer from a middle-aged woman, pausing to examine the reading before quickly turning back to the patient.
"Have you registered? Then go and see the doctor," the staffer said.
One 35-year-old man surnamed Li voiced the fears of many. "I have a fever and cough, so I'm worried that I'm infected," he said.

READ: Hospitals in China's virus epicentre launch public appeals for supplies

With millions of people on the move across China for the holiday, the government has halted all travel out of Wuhan, shut down its public transport and told residents to stay home. Few flights were available to the city.
"This year we have a very scary Chinese New Year. People are not going outside because of the virus," a taxi driver in the city, who asked not to be named, told AFP.
He said a prolonged shutdown should not pose food-shortage problems because many Chinese had stocked up for the holiday.
Besides Wuhan, 12 smaller cities nearby have battened down the hatches, with most announcing measures Friday that include closing public venues, restricting large gatherings and halting public transportation, as well as urging citizens not to travel.
Several of the cities have populations numbering several million, led by Huanggang with 7.5 million.
People wearing protective masks travel
People wearing protective masks travel for the Chinese New Year holidays at the Beijing West Railway Station in Beijing on Jan 24, 2020. (Photo: AFP/Nicolas Asfouri)

The pathogen - 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) - has caused many outlets in Shanghai, Beijing and other cities to sell out of face masks.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that 40 military medical doctors were being deployed to Wuhan to help with intensive care.
In addition, 405 medical workers were being sent to Wuhan from Shanghai, said state news agency Xinhua.
In Beijing, staff in full-body protective suits were seen Friday checking the temperatures of people entering a subway station.
Thermal cameras also scanned passengers arriving at Beijing's West Railway Station.
'WE LOVE YOU'
Beijing has been praised for its response in contrast to SARS, when it took months to report the disease and initially denied WHO experts any access.
Gao Fu, head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, asked China's people to forego New Year gatherings this year and confine themselves at home until the all-clear.

READ: Cirque du Soleil cancels shows in China over Wuhan virus

Beijing has cancelled popular New Year public events at temples in the capital, the historic Forbidden City will close from Saturday, and Shanghai Disneyland said it also will shut down for an indefinite period from Saturday.
A number of tourist spots were closed and events cancelled in central Hunan province, which borders Hubei province.
The crisis was given a prominent spot on the celebrated gala show on state TV Friday evening, the traditional Chinese New Year's Eve extravaganza broadcast by CCTV watched by hundreds of millions of Chinese.
The host told Wuhan medical staff "We love you" against a backdrop of hospital footage and stirring music.

MORE: Our coverage on the Wuhan virus and its developments

For full coverage and latest developments on the Wuhan virus outbreak: https://cna.asia/wuhan-virus
Source: AFP/ec