Seoul/Shanghai - International concern
about the spread of coronavirus outside China grew on Sunday
with sharp rises in infections in three countries - South Korea,
Italy and Iran.
South Korea went on high alert after the number of
infections surged over 600 with six deaths. Italy saw a rise to
132 cases and imposed stringent curbs in parts of the country to
try to stop the spread. Iran has reported 43 cases, with eight
deaths.
In China, which has seen the vast majority of cases,
authorities reported 648 new infections - higher than a day
earlier - but only 18 were outside of Hubei province, the lowest
number outside the epicentre since authorities began publishing
data a month ago and locked down large parts of the country.
President Xi Jinping said that while measures to deal with
the virus had been effective, the battle to contain it was still
at a crucial stage. State run television urged
people to avoid complacency, drawing attention to people
gathering in public areas and tourist spots without wearing
masks.
The virus has killed 2,442 people in China, which has
reported 76,936 cases, and has slammed the brakes on the world's
second largest economy. It has spread to some 26 other countries
and territories, with a death toll of around two dozen,
according to a Reuters tally.
It has been fatal in 2% of reported cases, with the elderly
and ill the most vulnerable, according to the World Health
Organization (WHO), which said on Saturday it was worried by the
detection of infections without a clear link to
China.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, centre, has put the country on its highest alert for infectious diseases and says officials should take "unprecedented, powerful" steps to fight a viral outbreak. Picture: Lee Jin-wook/Yonhap via AP
SOUTH KOREAN ALERT
South Korea's president said the government had raised the
disease alert to the highest level, allowing authorities to send
extra resources to Daegu city and Cheongdo county, which were
designated "special care zones" on Friday.
Health officials reported 169 new infections, bringing the
total to 602, having doubled from Friday to Saturday.
More than half the new cases are linked to a church in the
southeastern city of Daegu after a 61-year-old woman known as
"Patient 31" who attended services there tested positive for the
virus last week. The woman had no recent record of overseas
travel.
The raised alert level also enables the government to
forcibly prevent public activities and order the temporary
closure of schools, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency said,
although the government gave no immediate details on what steps
could be taken.
Concern about the reach and rapid spread of the coronavirus
also grew in Europe and the Middle East.
In Italy, schools and universities were closed and some
soccer matches postponed in the affected northern regions of
Lombardy and Veneto, the country's industrial heartland.
A woman wearing a sanitary mask walks past the Duomo gothic cathedral in Milan, Italy. A dozen Italian towns saw daily life disrupted after the deaths of two people infected with the virus from China and a pair of case clusters without direct links to the outbreak abroad. Picture: Luca Bruno/AP
Almost a dozen towns in Lombardy and Veneto with a combined
population of some 50,000 have effectively been placed under
quarantine, with locals urged to stay home and special
permission needed to enter or leave the designated
areas.
Iran reported a total of 43 infections, with eight deaths -
all since Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq and Turkey imposed travel and
immigration restrictions on Iran, while Oman on Sunday urged its
citizens to steer clear of countries with high infection rates
and said arrivals from those nations would be quarantined.
Smoke billows from a burning tyre as residents demonstrate against a report that Israel may quarantine visitors from South Korea at a military base in the Jewish settlement of Har Gilo, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Picture: Eli Berlzon/Reuters
The WHO says the virus is severe or critical in only a fifth
of infected patients, and mild in the rest, but the potential
economic impact of the disease was prominent at a meeting of G20
finance ministers in Riyadh.
The International Monetary Fund chief said China's 2020
growth would likely be lower at 5.6%, down 0.4 percentage points
from its January outlook, with 0.1 percentage points shaved from
global growth.
PRESSURE ON JAPAN
In Japan, where the government is facing growing questions
about whether it is doing enough to counter the virus,
authorities had confirmed 773 cases by early Sunday evening,
most of them from a cruise ship quarantined near Tokyo.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe instructed government agencies to
urgently prepare medical provisions and draft a comprehensive
plan to curb the spread.
A third passenger from the virus-infected Diamond Princess
cruise ship, a Japanese man in his 80s, died on Sunday,
authorities said.
In South Korea, Catholic churches in Daegu and Gwangju have
suspended mass and other gatherings, while churches elsewhere
saw declines in attendance on Sunday, especially among the
elderly.
Residents hold placards as they demonstrate against a report that Israel may quarantine visitors from South Korea at a military base in the Jewish settlement of Har Gilo, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The Hebrew writing reads:" No to Corona" Picture: Eli Berlzon/Reuters
"If the situation gets worse, I think we'll need to take
more measures. Currently, we're limiting personal gatherings
within the church except for Mass," said Song Gi-young, 53,
wearing a face mask at church.
Heo Young-moo, 88, expressed frustration.
Ambulances carrying patients infected with the novel coronavirus arrive at a hospital in Daegu, South Korea. Picture: Lim Hwa-young/Yonhap via AP
"Devotees shouldn't go to any risky places ... Hasn't it
become so widespread because those people didn't get checked?","
he said.
In China, the cities of Beijing, Zhejiang, Sichuan had no
new infections on Feb. 22 for the first time since the outbreak
was detected. There were signs of street life in Shanghai, with
some cafes serving take-out food and families wearing masks
walking their dogs.
Analysts have been closely watching out for any signs of a
secondary wave of infections as transport restrictions are eased
and many migrant workers return to factories and offices.
Business activity is only gradually returning to normal after
widespread disruption.