Coronavirus: US confirms first death, in Washington state

The US has reported its first death from the new coronavirus, in the north-west state of Washington.

Officials said the patient was a man in his 50s with underlying health conditions.

President Donald Trump said more cases were “likely” but that the US was prepared for any circumstance.

Officials said they were expanding travel restrictions on Iran and urged Americans to avoid hard-hit parts of Italy and South Korea.

More than 85,000 coronavirus cases have been reported in 57 countries around the world and almost 3,000 deaths, according to the World Health Organization. The vast majority of infections and deaths are in China, where the virus emerged late last year.

What is happening in the US?

Local health officials confirmed on Saturday that the man in his 50s died in Washington state’s King County. They said he had not travelled to any high-risk areas.

There was confusion earlier as Mr Trump described the patient as a “wonderful woman”.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee has declared a state of emergency in response to new cases in the state.

It comes as officials on the US West Coast – in California, Oregon and Washington – expressed concerns about cases appearing in patients who had not visited an area where there was an outbreak or been in contact with anyone who had.

Officials in Washington state on Saturday said they were investigating a possible outbreak of the coronavirus at a local nursing home.

Dr Jeffrey Duchin, a health official for Washington’s Seattle and King County, said there were two cases associated with the long-term care facility Life Care Center of Kirkland – one a healthcare worker and the other a resident in her 70s.

Dr Duchin said about 27 residents and 25 staff members at the centre had “some sort of symptoms”. Officials said more positive cases were expected.

In total, the WHO says there have been 62 cases in the US so far.

A US citizen previously died in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus first appeared.

What else did Trump say?

While acknowledging that more cases were expected, he also sought to quell fears over the outbreak.

“Since the early stages of the foreign outbreak my administration has taken the most aggressive action in modern history to confront the spread of this disease,” he said.

“Our country is prepared for any circumstance. There is no reason to panic at all.”

He said healthy individuals “should be able to fully recover”.

Vice-President Mike Pence announced that an existing ban on travel from Iran had been expanded to include any foreign national who has visited the country within the last 14 days.

Iran has reported the most coronavirus deaths outside China.

Americans were also urged not to visit hard-hit areas in global hot-spots Italy and South Korea.

Mr Pence said the US was working with local officials to co-ordinate screening of travellers entering the US from those countries.

France tightens restrictions

France earlier announced that it had banned all indoor gatherings of more than 5,000 people, as part of efforts to contain the country’s outbreak.

Measures announced after an emergency cabinet meeting also include the cancellation of the Paris half-marathon which was to be held on Sunday.

In the worst-hit area, north of Paris, all public gatherings have been banned.

The total number of cases of the new coronavirus in France rose to 100 on Saturday. Two patients have died.

“Our goal at this stage is to limit the spread,” Health Minister Olivier Véran said after Saturday’s cabinet meeting.

Among the events affected by the prohibition of large indoor gatherings is Paris’s annual agricultural fair. Its final day, which was scheduled for Sunday, has been cancelled.

The government has urged residents of the worst-hit areas to avoid “non-essential travel” and “work from home if possible “.

What other developments have there been?

• South Korea, which has the highest number of cases outside China, mobilised the army on Saturday. Soldiers have been disinfecting large parts of Daegu, the south-eastern city that has been at the centre of the country’s coronavirus outbreak.
• In Italy, Europe’s worst-affected country with 650 cases and 17 deaths, five Serie A football games have been postponed. The games were going to be played behind closed doors, but the league decided to call them off on Saturday
• Iran on Saturday said the total number of infections there had reached 593 and 43 patients had died
• Qatar reported its first case, after a 36-year-old Qatari woman who was evacuated to the country from Iran tested positive for the virus, according to state media
• Ecuador also confirmed its first case of the virus
• Three more patients from England tested positive for the virus, bringing the total number of UK cases to 23.
• Brazil confirmed its second case of the new coronavirus in a man who had recently travelled to Italy
• Officials in the US states of California, Oregon and Washington State reported three cases where patients had no known connection to a badly hit country. The announcements raising concerns the virus could be spreading within the community.
• Factory activity in China fell to a record low in February as manufacturers closed their operations to contain the spread of the disease. Nasa said an economic slowdown following the outbreak was “at least partly” linked to significant decreases in nitrogen dioxide over the country

Image copyrightNASA

BBC