Posted on 01/22/2020 9:21:07 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Deaths from China’s new virus rose to 17 on Wednesday with more than 540 cases confirmed, increasing fears of contagion from an infection suspected to originate from illegally-traded wildlife.
The previously unknown, flu-like coronavirus strain is believed to have emerged from an animal market in central Wuhan city, with cases now detected as far away as the United States.
Contrasting with its secrecy over the 2002-03 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that killed nearly 800 people, China’s communist government has this time given regular updates to try to avoid panic as millions travel for the Lunar New Year.
“The rise in the mobility of the public has objectively increased the risk of the epidemic spreading,” National Health Commission vice-minister Li Bin said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) was meeting to rule if the outbreak was a global health emergency.
After official appeals to stay calm, many Chinese were cancelling trips, buying face masks, avoiding public places such as cinemas and shopping centres, and even turning to an online plague simulation game or watching disaster movie “The Flu” as a way to cope.
“The best way to conquer fear is to confront fear,” said one commentator on China’s Twitter-like Weibo.
The virus has spread from Wuhan around China to population centres including Beijing, Shanghai, Macau and Hong Kong.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnbc.com ...
bttt
China coronavirus deaths rise to 17, heightening global alarm
I’m reading it’s most deadly for those over 60 - Baby Boomer Virus ...
China coronavirus deaths rise to 17, heightening global alarm
If it’s your time, it’s your time. I would not worry about this, even if you are travelling to Chinal.
17 deaths, in a country of 1.3 BILLION PEOPLE, is statistically insignificant.
Meanwhile, the head of China’s Bureau of Disease Prevention and Control said Wednesday that the new virus had originated in wild animals sold at a seafood market in Wuhan.
The bureau’s director general, Gao Fu, referred to a paper published on Tuesday by a joint team of researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the People’s Liberation Army and the Institut Pasteur in Shanghai that concluded “the Wuhan coronavirus’ natural host could be bats … but between bats and humans there could be an unknown intermediate.”
The new virus and the SARS virus are both mutations of HKU9-1, a virus found in fruit bats, the researchers said, according to the South China Morning Post.
The virus causes a type of pneumonia. Symptoms include fever and difficulty in breathing.
The virus is spreading, including to Beijing, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shanghai and Tianjin City. It is moving past China into Taiwan, Thailand, Japan and even a case confirmed in Washington state.
The media just wants to incite panic.
I’m sure there are experts doing what they ought to do. There is no reason for the public to know about this or care about this.
RE: 17 deaths, in a country of 1.3 BILLION PEOPLE, is statistically insignificant.
It only takes a spark to get a wildfire going.
It was 9 last night.
The virus is spreading...
I’ll be caught off guard when the boy cries wolf, and there really is a wolf. But even then, I’ll hear about it WAY before I need to be concerned about it.
My sister in law who lives in China says the news is not reporting it all, and that very many are sick. Many travel plans are cancelled, many family gatherings postponed until after the holiday.
Here in Washington where we have a case, we are going to stay away from large crowds of Chinese on New Years, restaurants included.
A ways to go until it matches Spanish flu of 1918... 50 million
How many people in China die from the regular flu?
Or from falling off of bicycles?
Or from choking on bananas?
Isolated this data means nothing.
RE: A ways to go until it matches Spanish flu of 1918... 50 million
I’m optimistic that we can contain this. we have much better science and disease control than over a century ago.
And a vaccine is being developed even as we speak.
SEE HERE:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/20/health/coronavirus-nih-vaccine-development/index.html
Isn't that true of any upper respiratory virus? Is there something particularly morr concerning with this virus? (question for anyone in the know)
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