February 4 coronavirus news

Two additional evacuation flights for American citizens are scheduled to depart Wuhan, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak, on Tuesday for military bases in California with a combined 550 passengers on board, a US official with knowledge of the matter told CNN’s Steven Jiang in Beijing.  

One flight will head to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego and the other is going to Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, said the US official. The plane heading to Travis AFB is expected to land at 1:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday, another official told CNN’s Barbara Starr.

These two flights mark the second time the US government evacuates its citizens from Wuhan. The first evacuation flight was a chartered plane that transported some 201 US passengers – mostly diplomats and their families – to March Air Reserve Base in southern California, where they arrived on January 29.

Thai officials conduct temperature screenings at a mall in Bangkok, Thailand on Tuesday.

Thai health officials have confirmed six additional cases of the Wuhan coronavirus – bringing the countrywide total to 25.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, the Director General for the Disease Control Department Dr. Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoen said that four of the new cases are Thai nationals, and two are Chinese nationals.

Two of the Thai nationals are a married couple who recently traveled to Japan and the other two Thais are “hired car drivers” who have transported Chinese passengers.

Five out of the six cases are in stable condition, with the sixth case – a 70-year-old Thai taxi driver who transported Chinese tourists – in critical condition, according to Dr. Wattanayingcharoen.

An illustration from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) depicts the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). The virus has spread globally, sickened more than 20,000 people and caused at least 427 deaths since the first cases were detected in central China in December.

The illustration shows the “ultrastructural morphology” exhibited by coronaviruses, CDC said.

The British Foreign Office (FCO) is advising UK nationals in China to leave the country over the coronavirus outbreak. 

In a statement, the FCO said it “now recommends that British Nationals who are able to leave China do so.” 

The FCO maintains its current advisory against “all but essential” travel to mainland China. 

The Diamond Princess cruise ship sits anchored in quarantine off the port of Yokohama, Japan, on Tuesday.

The “Diamond Princess” cruise ship will remain in the Japanese port of Yokohama overnight, city officials announced Tuesday, after it was revealed that a former passenger has contracted the Wuhan coronavirus.

Its operator, Princess Cruises, halted plans for passengers to leave the vessel at the end of a 16-day Asia cruise after it was informed that a man who disembarked in Hong Kong tested positive with the virus several days later. 

“While on the ship he did not visit the ship’s medical centre to report any symptoms or illness. The hospital reports that he is in stable condition and the family members traveling with him remain symptom-free,” the cruise company said in a statement.

Japanese authorities are racing to contain a possible outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus, locking down the vessel and the roughly 2,500 passengers and 1,000 crew on board.

Health ministry officials said more passengers than expected need to be temporarily quarantined while being tested, and it could take another day to finish the screenings.  

No one is allowed to leave the ship while officials test the group. Officials would not confirm how many people are being tested. So far there are no confirmed cases of the virus on the ship.

Medical workers spray antiseptic outside of the Shanghai Stock Exchange Building on Monday.

Monday’s market sell-off in China was the worst in many years and wiped nearly half a trillion dollars off the value of the country’s biggest companies. Now the Chinese government has to find ways to stem the panic before the coronavirus epidemic makes things even worse.

Beijing already has a blueprint to work with. When the Chinese stock market bubble popped in 2015, sending shares into an even deeper tailspin, the government stepped in with a rescue plan. Using a state-owned financing company and its sovereign wealth fund, China spent more than 1.2 trillion yuan ($170 billion) buying shares to shore up prices.

This time, the country may have to do the same.

Read the full story here.

A board displays airline departure information at Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan, on January 31.

Two Japanese airlines – All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines – have announced a reduction or suspension of flights to mainland China due to the coronavirus outbreak.

All Nippon Airways will suspend flights between Narita and Beijing from February 10 to March 29, and flights from Haneda to Beijing will be halved. The suspension of flights between Narita and Wuhan will be extended until March 28.

Japan Airlines also announced that flights between three Japanese cities (Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka) and four Chinese cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin) will be reduced from 196 flights weekly to 86 services due to decreased demand from February 17 through March 28.  

Read more here about airlines’ reaction to the coronavirus outbreak.

The coronavirus outbreak is not being considered a pandemic by World Health Organization (WHO) officials who are hopeful that transmission of the virus can be contained.

The agency acknowledged that it is challenging to contain the virus because of global mass movement, but trust that the control measures in place will stop transmission.

“We believe it can be done with containment measures currently in place,” Sylvie Briand, director of the Infectious Hazards Management Department at the WHO, said on Tuesday.

“We are not in a pandemic,” she said, explaining that the virus is currently considered to be an epidemic with multiple locations. “We will try to extinguish the transmission in each of these,” she said.

To help reduce continued spread of the coronavirus, Briand highlighted that masks alone are “not enough” and urged people to also wash their hands regularly.

Singapore has confirmed six additional cases of the Wuhan coronavirus, including four local human-to-human transmissions. The six new cases bring the total number of people infected with coronavirus in the city state to 24.

According to Singapore’s Ministry of Health, three of the new local transmission cases can be traced to contact with recent travelers from mainland China. The fourth case involved a close contact of one of the local transmission cases.

An attendant checks the temperature of a visitor at the entrance to the Galaxy Macau casino and hotel in Macau, China, on January 24.

Macao, one of the world’s top gambling hubs, is planning to close its casinos as the deadly coronavirus outbreak continues to surge.

The government of the semi-autonomous Chinese territory will suspend operations in gambling and other related industries for about two weeks, Macao Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng said during a press conference Tuesday.

Macao has 10 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, which has killed at least 427 people and infected more than 20,000, mainly in China.

Ho said that the decision was made after an expert review, as the ninth confirmed patient was discovered to have worked in the gambling industry.

Read the full story here.

This handout released by Malaysia's Ministry of Health shows health officials wearing protective suits at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia on Tuesday.

Two additional cases of the novel coronavirus were confirmed in Hong Kong on Tuesday, bringing the total to 17 cases and one death in the semi-autonomous Chinese city.

In a press conference on Tuesday with the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority, officials confirmed there are now a total of four local transmission cases in Hong Kong. The two new cases announced on Tuesday have no travel history to mainland China and neither do their family members.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan from the Department of Health warned that though the number of confirmed cases in Hong Kong seems low, the Hospital Authority does not rule out the potential for large scale spreading in the future due to the local transmission cases.

Meanwhile, the number of confirmed Wuhan coronavirus cases in Malaysia has increased to 10 following the confirmation of two additional cases in the country on Tuesday.

Read more about where coronavirus has been confirmed here.

A laboratory assistant prepares a test for the coronavirus at the Amedeo di Savoia hospital in Turin, Italy on January 30.

There’s still a lot we don’t know about the Wuhan coronavirus, and scientists around the world are racing to gather data and develop a treatment.

New drug combinations: Officials in Thailand said Monday that a second patient has been treated with a new combination of HIV and flu drugs, after doctors said the cocktail had been successful in treating a 71-year-old woman from China with the virus. Officials have yet to provide an update on the success of the treatment for the second patient.

Thailand’s Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told reporters that the 71-year-old had the most severe symptoms of all those in care in the country. While he cautioned against placing too much expectation on a tiny number of cases, Anutin said he hoped “other academic, medical or research institutions can take this treatment result and find more facts as much as they can do.”

Experimental medication: Gilead Sciences, a biopharmaceutical firm with an experimental antiviral drug called remdesivir that is used to treat the Ebola virus, said late Friday it is working with Chinese health authorities to see if the medication can combat the symptoms of coronavirus.

The company said in a statement that remdesivir has demonstrated some success in treating Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) – two viruses similar to the Wuhan coronavirus – in animals.

Treatment centers: A purpose-built hospital dedicated to treating the virus also opened in Wuhan Monday. The institution was constructed in under a week, and a second is due to open Thursday. Both will only handle coronavirus patients, helping to take the pressure off the severely stretched Wuhan healthcare system.

Signs outside restaurants in Hoi An, Vietnam, taken in January 2020.

As news of the virus has spread, so has the re-emergence of old racist tropes that portray Asians, their food, and their customs as unsafe and unwelcome.

Many people of Asian descent living abroad say they have been treated like walking pathogens. A Malaysian-Chinese social worker told CNN that when she sat down on a London bus last week, the person in the next seat gathered their things and moved.

Stereotypes around food: Perhaps the most widespread form of xenophobia comes in fearmongering, sensationalist stereotypes about Chinese food.

China’s wildlife trade does pose legitimate problems – but in recent weeks, misinformation and misleading reports online have not only fueled public fear and paranoia toward the coronavirus, but have reinforced racist stereotypes about Chinese food as dirty and dangerous.

What people in China actually eat: The same type of things you might see in other cuisines, like pork or chicken. Only a small minority of people in China actually eat wild animals, and it remains a very niche market.

Even in the one town that actively promotes eating dog, the majority of residents don’t do so – and Chinese activists nationwide have long campaigned against the notorious dog meat festival.

Ultimately, a lot of Western disgust toward so-called “weird” Chinese food is itself Eurocentric. What we like to eat is culturally relative; if the animals consumed in China are not endangered or environmentally unsustainable, is it inherently more unethical than eating other types of meats?

Read the full story here.

The death rate from the Wuhan coronavirus across mainland China stands at 2.1%, China’s National Health Commission said in a press update on Tuesday.

In Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak, the rate is 3.1%, said Jiao Yahui, deputy director of the National Health Commissions State Health Administration.

Hubei province accounts for 97% of all deaths.

Of the 425 confirmed deaths across mainland China, 80% of the victims were over the age of 60, and 75% of victims had some form of underlying disease, Jiao added. Two-thirds of the confirmed deaths are male.

Jiao attributed the higher number of deaths in Hubei province to the large number of severe cases as well as the initial lack of hospital beds to treat patients.

Despite the youngest confirmed case being just one month old, the majority of cases – especially severe cases – involve elderly patients, Jiao said.

The national average time needed for a patient to fully recover is nine days, according to Jiao. She added that in Hubei province the recovery time is higher at 20 days because there are more severe cases.

There are currently 20,438 confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus across mainland China.

Protesters in Hong Kong calling for the government to close its borders with mainland China, on February 3, 2020.

More than 185 cases of the Wuhan coronavirus have been confirmed in over 25 places worldwide, prompting countries and airlines to place varying levels of travel restrictions on China.

The most stringent appear to be in the US, banning all foreign nationals who have entered China in the last 14 days – a move that has been criticized both at home and abroad.

Some, like Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, have called the Trump administration’s guidelines opaque and confusing. Beijing also slammed the US decision as an overreaction that would feed into mass hysteria about the virus.

A number of other countries including Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea have also placed travel restrictions or bans on travelers coming from China.

A Chinese woman and her child in the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on February 3, 2020 in Manila, Philippines.

The Wuhan coronavirus continues to spread across Asia and the rest of the world. Countries have implemented various emergency measures and travel restrictions, as researchers continue working toward a treatment.

If you’re just joining us now, here’s what you need to know:

Hong Kong protesters demanding closed borders with China on February 3, 2020.

Months of violent protests and a bruising US-China trade war pushed Hong Kong into a recession last year for the first time in a decade. Now the coronavirus outbreak threatens to derail things once again.

Officials said yesterday Hong Kong’s economy shrank 1.2% last year as massive protests paralyzed the city’s streets and scared away tourists. GDP shrank 2.9% in the fourth quarter alone.

Hopes dashed: There were signs that 2020 might be better – diminishing protests, and an initial trade deal – but then the outbreak happened.

It has spurred the city government to cancel school for weeks, and order civil servants to work from home. Retail stores, theme parks, cultural attractions and other hotspots remain closed.

Tourism hit: The protests already took a heavy toll on the tourism industry: The number of people who visited Hong Kong in November plunged by nearly half compared to a year earlier.

The coronavirus outbreak will likely exacerbate that problem. Most of Hong Kong’s visitors come from mainland China, where many cities have placed their residents on lockdown. Hong Kong has also closed nearly all of its border crossings into the mainland in an attempt to stop the virus from spreading.

Read more about the hit to Hong Kong’s economy here.

Chinese passengers, most wearing masks, arrive to board trains before the Lunar New Year at a Beijing railway station.

In China, Wuhan used to be known as a city of cherry blossoms, an economic engine of the central heartland, and the birthplace of a revolution that brought down the country’s last imperial dynasty.

But now, the city has become the face of the deadly novel coronavirus outbreak – and fears have fueled resentment and discrimination against people from Wuhan.

Stranded in their own country: One social media user claimed in a post that she had left Wuhan on January 20, and was been kicked out by her guesthouse in Changsha, Hunan province, last Sunday.

A nightmare followed. There were no trains stopping in Wuhan anymore; she couldn’t contact Wuhan authorities for help; the police told her to go find a homeless shelter; she even got a health check at the hospital, but no hotels would take her.

She only managed to find a place to stay after being rejected by more than 10 hotels and guesthouses.

Read more about it here.

A picture taken on February 2, 2020 shows the military hospital in Brussels where Belgian citizens are quarantined after being evacuated from Wuhan.

Belgium has confirmed its first case of coronavirus, Belgium’s public health department said today.

The patient was one of the nine citizens who had been evacuated out of Wuhan this past weekend.

All nine were tested for the infection at the Neder-Over-Heembeek military hospital in the capital Brussels after they arrived back to Belgium on Sunday, with one patient testing positive.

“They were transferred last night to St. Peter’s University Hospital in Brussels, one of our country’s two reference centers. This hospital has all the necessary expertise and support to ensure the best possible care.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping in Macau on December 18, 2019.

Speaking to top officials tasked with fighting the Wuhan coronavirus Monday, Chinese President Xi Jinping said the “outcome of the epidemic prevention and control directly affects people’s lives and health, the overall economic and social stability and the country’s opening-up.”

While much of Xi’s speech was dedicated to promoting a centralized, coordinated approach to tackling the deadly epidemic, he also hinted at some problems which are believed to have led to the virus’s spread across China and the world.

Xi called for “resolute opposition against bureaucratism and the practice of formalities for formalities’ sake in the prevention work.” His comments may be a reference to statements made by some Wuhan officials that they did not report the virus earlier as they needed to request permission from the central government in order to do so.

“The outbreak is a major test of China’s system and capacity for governance, and we must sum up the experience and draw a lesson from it,” the meeting concluded, according to state media.

What this actually means: While all the problems identified certainly exist, the ability of the Communist Party under Xi to deal with them is less clear. Bureaucratism has long been a problem in China, with officials wary of doing anything outside their remit or taking risks, even in a time of crisis when alacrity in decision making is needed.

One of Xi’s signature policies, a far-reaching corruption campaign, may have actually made this problem worse. By making officials’ positions far more precarious and centralizing more and more power under himself and the central government, it is even more unlikely that provincial politicians will take action without the approval of Beijing.

Poor sanitation, particularly in rural areas and the trade in wild animals were recognized as problems after the 2003 SARS outbreak. A “Patriotic Hygiene Campaign” was launched, and officials vowed to enforce tighter regulations on the trade in civet cats – which were blamed for spreading SARS – and other wild meat.

Neither of these campaigns had far reaching effects. Hygiene remains an issue in many areas – a “toilet revolution” was launched last year – and civet cats were found to be on sale at Wuhan markets.

Taiwan announced today that the island will deny entry to foreign nationals who have been to China, starting this Friday.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the restrictions are in response to the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak, in an effort to safeguard public health and control the flow of people entering Taiwan.

The restrictions mean that any foreign national who has visited or lived in the People’s Republic of China in the past 14 days will be banned from entering Taiwan.

Those needing to enter for “special reasons” can fill out a visa as long as they have not been to areas “severely affected” by the virus and can submit travel history reports along with medical reports.

Foreign nationals with a Taiwan resident certificate who have been in China in the past 14 days are required to self-isolate in their homes and monitor their health.

Taiwan has 10 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. 

The coronavirus’ spread shows no signs of slowing, as China reported another major spike in both confirmed cases and deaths.

The total number of confirmed cases in China stands at 20,438 as of today, an increase of 3,235 from the previous day – a jump of over 18%. The death toll is now at 425 in mainland China, an increase of around 65 from Sunday.

Surging death toll: The numbers have been jumping by huge margins in recent weeks. Less than a month ago, the first coronavirus patient died in China on January 9. By January 28, the death toll had topped 100; by January 31 it topped 200; the very next day, February 1, it topped 300. Today it topped 400.

There are several factors behind the massive jumps, including potential delays between patients being infected and noticing symptoms, seeking medical attention, being tested, and placed in isolation or given other treatment.

Read more here.

The Wuhan coronavirus has spread throughout the world since the first cases were detected in central China in December.

There are at least 185 confirmed cases of Wuhan coronavirus in more than 25 countries and territories outside mainland China:

Read more about the patients in each place.

A photo of cells infected with the novel coronavirus, from a patient sample.

There’s still a lot we don’t know about the Wuhan coronavirus, and scientists around the world are racing to gather data and develop a treatment.

Here’s what we can tell you so far:

An evacuation plane carrying Mongolian citizens out of Wuhan. Numerous countries, including the US and UK, have also chartered evacuation flights.

San Diego resident Kenneth Burnett was supposed to fly to Wuhan to join his wife and two children for Chinese New Year.

Instead, the city was shut down, trapping his family there with Burnett still in California.

Finally, he is now set to reunite with his wife Yanjun Wei, 3-year-old son Rowan, and 1-year-old daughter Mia, who are tentatively booked on the next evacuation flight out of China.

Trapped in Wuhan: Wei has not left her home in the last couple of weeks, and has stayed with her children in a high-rise apartment building ini Wuhan.

Wei’s mother tried to get groceries for the family, but “there were no vegetables left in the market and she bought the last carton of milk.” 

Burnett and Wei tried to contact the State Department as well as the US embassy in China for help, and finally received a call back after many media outlets picked up on his story.

Evacuation plans: According to Burnett, his wife and two kids are now tentatively booked on the next evacuation flight out. Still, they’re nervous because the State Department said there’s no guarantee.

Investors look at a screen showing stock market movements in Hangzhou, China, on February 3, 2020.

Authorities across China are imposing stringent restrictions and extended holidays to try to combat the virus – but these measures are beginning to impact the country’s economy.

China’s stock markets posted major losses on Monday, their first day open following the Lunar New Year break.

Federal measures: Authorities in China announced a 1.2 trillion yuan ($173 billion) injection into Chinese markets to help maintain “reasonably ample liquidity” in the banking system and keep currency markets stable.

Migrant workers: It’s unclear how long Chinese workers can remain at home, with many facing several weeks out of work since the beginning of the Lunar New Year holiday. Many migrant workers traveled home for the festival, potentially leaving them trapped in their provinces and unable to return to the east coast, where most major manufacturing areas are.

The Diamond Princess cruise ship, anchored in quarantine off the port of Yokohama on February 4, 2020.

On Monday, Japan quarantined a cruise ship after a former passenger was found infected with coronavirus.

Roughly 2,500 passengers and 1,000 crew members on the ship will have to remain on the vessel until at least tonight, while government quarantine officers test passengers who fell ill.

How to stay safe: Cruise ships are sometimes given the derisive nickname of “floating Petri dishes,” due to the fact that guests are in a contained area for extended periods of time.

Cruise ship companies try to prevent diseases by emphasizing hygiene on board – for example, having hand sanitizer stations easily accessible in common areas and requiring staff members who handle food to wear gloves.

If you’re worried about your health on board, here are some tips: wash your hands frequently, not just before and after eating but whenever you touch shared surfaces like ship railings. Cough or sneeze into a tissue or your elbow instead of your hand, and avoid food and drink from questionable sources while on shore.

You might also want to get your vaccinations up to date. And people with underlying conditions or who are recovering from illness should consider postponing their travel, as they are more susceptible to viruses.

Read more about it here.

Visitors at Singapore's Merlion Park on January 26, 2020.

Singapore’s Ministry of Health says all of its 18 confirmed coronavirus cases are in stable condition, and most patients are improving.

Though the outbreak has claimed hundreds of lives in China and infected over 20,000 globally, the novel coronavirus’ mortality rate is only about 2-3% – far lower than other deadly outbreaks like Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which killed 774 people in 2003.

And there are other cases around the world of coronavirus patients stabilizing and improving. The first confirmed US patient was discharged yesterday from the Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Washington.

People wearing face masks walk in front of the Grand Lisboa Hotel on January 28, 2020 in Macao.

Macao, sometimes described as the Las Vegas of Asia, will suspend operations of its gambling and related industries for half a month, said the region’s chief executive Tuesday.

Macao officials tell CNN it has not been decided yet when this suspension will start, as the chief executive will meet with gambling companies today.

The seemingly unprecedented move comes after experts determined Macao’s ninth coronavirus case worked in the gambling industry. There are currently 10 known cases in Macao.

Ghost town: When CNN visited the freewheeling, semi-autonomous Chinese territory last week, reporters found a ghost town.

Considered the unofficial gambling capital of the world, Macao received almost 40 million visitors last year.

However, according to the Macao government, January tourism figures plunged 87% compared to the previous year, even though the busiest holiday of the year – Lunar New Year – fell in that period.

Hotels that were nearly at 100% capacity during the 2019 Lunar New Year were left half empty.

The health scare has threatened the business model at the heart of Macao’s economy. The former Portuguese colony depends on millions of visitors from mainland China.

Read more about the threat to Macao here.

Macao residents wearing face masks on January 28, 2020.

Macao confirmed the 10th coronavirus case on Tuesday, according to a government statement.

The patient is a 59-year-old male Macao resident who traveled to Guangzhou and returned to Macao on January 25. The next day, he started showing symptoms including a running nose, coughing and a fever.

He is now quarantined, and the authorities are investigating his close contacts and his medical history. 

Earlier this morning, Macao released details for its 9th coronavirus case as well – a 29-year-old female Macao resident. She hadn’t traveled outside Macao recently, but had visited the home of the 8th confirmed case on January 24.

In this file photo, Hawaii Lieutenant Governor, Josh Green, speaks at the press conference on December 26, 2019.

The US government has implemented new rules around travel from China – but some officials aren’t happy.

The Trump administration’s decision as “a rushed job,” Hawaii’s Lt. Gov. Joshua Green told CNN affiliate KITV on Sunday.

Some background: US citizens and others who are allowed to travel to the US from China are being funneled to 11 airports, where US authorities will conduct extra screening and transfer people for quarantine if needed.

The Honolulu International Airport in Hawaii is one of these 11 airports.

An exhibition centre that was converted into a hospital in Wuhan on February 4, 2020.

More than 400 people are dead from the Wuhan coronavirus, as officials in China and around the world try to contain the spread of a public health emergency.

Let’s break down the numbers:

Outside the mainland, the places with most coronavirus cases are Japan at 20, Thailand at 19, and Singapore at 18.

China’s propaganda authorities have struggled with how to handle the Wuhan coronavirus, perhaps the biggest domestic crisis to face President Xi Jinping since he assumed power.

Knee-jerk censorship and downplaying of any danger by local authorities in the days and weeks which followed the first diagnoses appear to have greatly increased the spread of the virus. Xi himself has been largely missing from front pages and news reports in recent days, even as state media has been clear to emphasize that he is working away in the background and directing the national response.

The most likely explanation for this is that the authorities are keen to ensure that Xi does not become the focus of the public’s anger and frustration, and can instead be framed as the person to take charge and solve the crisis.

That shift in the narrative has begun this week, as state media has played up positive stories – particularly about a hospital built in Wuhan in less than a week – and emphasized Xi’s personal control of the crisis.

According to a report by state news agency Xinhua, in a meeting Monday Xi “demanded resolute opposition against bureaucratism and the practice of formalities for formalities’ sake in the prevention work.”

As well as working to contain the virus and provide relief, however, another key point officials need to keep in mind, Xi said, was “public opinion guidance,” which would “better strengthen confidence, warm people’s hearts, and gather people’s hearts.”

Rui Zhong, a China expert at the Wilson Center, told CNN that she understands the value of boosting positive stories so that people, especially those under lockdown for weeks, don’t despair. However, she expressed concern that a desire to avoid negative coverage may lead to very real problems being ignored.

“(I’m) really worried that the stories of people struggling to get resources or (coronavirus) treatment will take a back seat to the ever present priority of political stability, positive energy, etc,” she said.

“Since the quarantine is challenging people’s endurance, maintaining long-term social confidence is probably a top priority (for the government).”

Authorities in Wuhan, China, where the coronavirus outbreak began, are building three additional new field hospitals to help respond to the crisis, state-run newspaper Changjiang Daily reported Monday.

Existing spaces, including a stadium and exhibition hall, will be converted into the hospitals, located in the city’s Jianghan, Wuchang, and Dongxihu Districts.

These are just the latest in a series of specially-built coronavirus-focused hospitals in Wuhan. One new hospital, Huoshenshan Hospital, was handed to the military to begin operations on Monday and a second facility, the Leishenshan Hospital, is due to be complete this week – both built in a matter of days.

Wuhan doctor Li Wenliang in an intensive care bed on oxygen support after contracting the coronavirus.

On December 30, Li Wenliang dropped a bombshell in his medical school alumni group on the popular Chinese messaging app WeChat: seven patients from a local seafood market had been diagnosed with an illness similar to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and quarantined in his hospital.

“I only wanted to remind my university classmates to be careful,” Li said.

But within hours, screenshots of his messages – containing his name – went viral. Soon after, Li became one of several whistleblower medics targeted by Wuhan police.

From an intensive care bed in hospital, Li told CNN he was confirmed Saturday to have contracted the virus.

His diagnosis has sparked outrage across China, where a backlash is growing against state censorship around the illness and an initial delay in warning the public about the deadly virus.

Here’s a look at how things unfolded:

Read more about Li and the public uproar here.

A 1-month-old baby girl in China’s southwestern Guizhou province has been diagnosed with the Wuhan coronavirus, Guizhou’s health commission confirmed in a news release.

The baby had come to Guizhou from another province, and is currently living in the provincial capital of Guiyang, according to the news release. She was diagnosed yesterday, and is currently being treated in isolation at the People’s Hospital of Guizhou Province.

Her condition is stable, the news release said.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (right) attends a parliament session in Tokyo on February 3.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has dismissed rumors circulating online that the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo would be cancelled over the coronavirus outbreak.

He added the government was in close contact with international bodies like the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Olympics are scheduled to start on July 24. Japan has so far confirmed 20 coronavirus cases.

Online rumors: Rumors of a potential cancellation grew after a German news outlet published a story about discussions between the IOC and WHO.

“Countermeasures against infectious diseases constitute an important part of our plans to host a safe and secure Games,” Olympics organizers told CNN in a statement. 

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot​ at the ​US Conference of Mayors' Winter Meeting in Washington on January 23, 2020.

Chicago’s mayor is the latest of several state leaders to criticize the federal government’s new travel and quarantine rules as opaque and confusing.

She also questioned guidelines about quarantine procedures – for instance, what does self-quarantining mean? How often should self-quarantined people check in with public health officials? These are questions the federal government need to answer clearly and specifically, she said.

“Despite this lack of clarity from federal leadership, Chicago remains prepared to implement the latest guidelines to protect our residents from coronavirus,” she said.

New measures in Chicago: Local authorities have added additional screenings at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, are partnering with airlines and the CDC, and mobilizing first responders, among other new measures to respond to the outbreak, Lightfoot said.

Total cases nationwide: As of February 3, the US had confirmed 11 cases of the coronavirus.

An elderly man who traveled on a cruise aboard the Diamond Princess was found to be infected with the Wuhan coronavirus.

Japan has quarantined a cruise ship that arrived at a port in Yokohama on Monday evening after a former passenger was found infected with Wuhan coronavirus on Saturday. 

The passenger: The 80-year-old man had visited mainland China for a few hours on January 10, but was not exposed to any wild animals or wet markets. He then flew from Hong Kong to Tokyo on January 17.

He reportedly started coughing on January 19. On January 20, he boarded the Diamond Princess cruise in Yokohama, and disembarked in Hong Kong on January 25.

He sought medical care on January 30 after he started experiencing fever symptoms. He is currently in a stable condition. 

Quarantine on cruise: The ship is currently quarantined for 24 hours. 

Japanese authorities are working to identify the identities of passengers and crew who came into contact with the infected passenger. Quarantine officers are checking the health of all 2,666 passengers of different nationalities and 1,045 crew members onboard.

Several people on the ship said they felt ill, were tested for the virus, and are in separate rooms to avoid contact with each other.

The cruise ship also made stops at Kagoshima in Japan,  Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, and Okinawa before docking in Yokohama.

South Korea confirmed its 16th case of the Wuhan coronavirus today, according to Kim Gang-lip, the country’s Health and Welfare vice minister.

Macao also confirmed its 9th case of Wuhan coronavirus. The patient is a 29-year-old female resident of Macao, according to a statement from Macao’s Health Bureau.

The woman had not traveled outside of Macao recently, but is said to have visited the home of the 8th reported case on January 24.

Medical workers hold a strike near Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong, on February 3.

A “large number” of hospital staff in Hong Kong are absent today due to a labor union strike, said the city’s Hospital Authority.

Why they’re striking: The Hospital Authority Employees Alliance, a medical workers’ union with over 13,000 members, began striking on Monday to demand the government completely close all borders with China.

As the group and the authorities failed to reach a compromise, the group kicked off the second stage of strike on Tuesday to further limit services.

The move comes as Hong Kong announced the death of a 39-year-old man from the Wuhan coronavirus on Tuesday. The man had previously visited Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak. To date, Hong Kong has recorded a total of 15 confirmed coronavirus cases.

What this means: Emergency services in public hospitals have been “affected to a certain extent” by the strike, said the Hospital Authority.

Public hospitals now only have “limited number of staff on duty” to provide emergency services, while specialist outpatient clinics can only provide “limited services.” The authorities advised patients to reschedule appointments.

Government response: Chief Executive Carrie Lam criticized the strike, saying critical patients like cancer patients still needed their services. Now, medical staff who are still working will have heavier workloads because of the strike, she said.

The government has already imposed several travel restrictions and closed many borders with the mainland; only three crossing points, including the city’s international airport, remain open.

Closing all borders would also mean shutting out Hong Kong residents traveling in the mainland, who would be stranded and unable to return home, Lam said.

The second patient with the Wuhan coronavirus outside of mainland China has died, Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority told CNN today.

The 39-year-old man died today at Princess Margaret Hospital and had an underlying illness. He took the high-speed train from Hong Kong to Wuhan on Jan 21 and returned to the city from Changshanan on Jan 23.

He was said to have never visited any health care facilities, wet market or seafood market or had any exposure to wild animals during the incubation period.

The Philippines is the only other location outside mainland China to report a death from the virus. That victim had also travelled to Wuhan before arriving in the Philippines.

A day after sweeping travel restrictions took effect at US airports in response to the coronavirus outbreak, many questions remain.

One state official told CNN they had been working all weekend to understand the new rules, and had been on the phone with the White House several times.

“It’s a high level order without a lot details filled in. We are working really hard to understand the conditions,” said the official in a phone call. “There are a lot of unknowns.” 

Another official at a major West Coast airport told CNN, “Everyone has been trying to nail down clarifications on the travel ban.”

The West Coast official’s airport is one of the 11 that will handle enhanced screenings for coronavirus.

Some context: Under the new rules, Americans who traveled to China in the last 14 days are to be routed through one of 11 designated airports for screening and possible self-quarantine. Americans who traveled to China’s Hubei province in the past 14 days may be subject to mandatory quarantine.

Foreign nationals who traveled to China in that period are banned from entry.

A traveler disembarking in Wuhan after arriving from Bangkok on January 31, 2020.

The Thai government is repatriating 142 of its citizens from Wuhan today, said Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.

The evacuation flight is expected to land at U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport, a joint civil-military airport south of Bangkok, later this evening.

The evacuated passengers will be put into quarantine at a naval facility for at least 14 days, said the Royal Thai Navy Spokesman on Facebook.

All crew on board the flight are wearing hazmat suits and there are eight medical personnel to assist the passengers.

Cases in Thailand: There have been 19 confirmed cases in Thailand so far, one of the highest numbers for a country outside mainland China. The only other country with a higher number is Japan, with 20 confirmed cases.

Chinese tourists in New York's Wall Street on February 3, 2020.

A Canadian citizen was turned back at the northern US border as a part of President Donald Trump’s ban on travelers who had recently been to China, said US officials on Monday.

The US ban: The US is temporarily denying entry to foreign nationals who visited China in the 14 days prior to their arrival to the US. The restrictions began on Sunday evening.

It’s not clear whether anyone else has been turned back apart from the Canadian citizen.

“We’re just beginning, today, to see results of implementation,” said acting Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli on Monday.

Anger from China: The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs lashed out at the US yesterday, accusing Washington of responding inappropriately and feeding hysteria.

Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on December 23, 2019.

In a Monday meeting with top Chinese officials, President Xi Jinping called the coronavirus outbreak a “major test” for China’s government, according to an article in state media outlet Xinhua.

The meeting resulted in a call to improve China’s public health and emergency management system, an “overhaul of environmental sanitation,” and a “crackdown on illegal wildlife markets and trade.”

Some context: Activists and international experts have long called for greater regulation on China’s wildlife trade, which has led to previous outbreaks as well.

This coronavirus is believed to have originated from wild bats, while the 2003 SARS epidemic began from civet cats, which are considered a delicacy in some parts of South China.

China has also faced criticism for its initial handling of the outbreak, with accusations of a coverup inside of Wuhan resulting in a slow response.

Read more here.

A total of 241 Australians have reached the Australian territory of Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean after being evacuated by plane from Wuhan, said Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday.

Most will be placed under quarantine on Christmas Island, site of a former off-shore immigration detention center, for two weeks; one pregnant woman and her partner have been sent to Perth for isolation.

Morrison added that the government is also working with Chinese authorities on a second repatriation flight from Wuhan, and the New Zealand government about possibly repatriating its nationals on the same flight.

The announcement that Wuhan returnees would be housed on the island sparked controversy in Australia. Christmas island is best known for its off-shore immigration detention center – with the site previously facing criticism due to its allegedly poor conditions.

Travellers arriving at the Beijing Railway Station on February 3, 2020.

The death toll from the Wuhan coronavirus has topped 400, and authorities in China and across the world are working to contain the disease.

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