China’s state newspaper China Daily published images it said showed the first wing of a specialist coronavirus hospital, built in Wuhan in 16 hours. Twitter users were quick to point out that the same picture of a modular building could be found elsewhere on the internet.
That was one thread in a busy Monday. The reported death toll stood at 82, with 2,887 confirmed infections, 2,827 of them in China. Australia had 4 cases, France 3, Hong Kong 5, Japan 3, Singapore 4, Thailand 5 and the United States 5. Cambodia and Sri Lanka reported their first.
Governments began telling citizens to stay away. Turkey urged its citizens not to travel to China unless necessary and, if they did, to keep clear of affected regions, “especially in Hubei province.” Ukraine advised against all non-essential travel to Hubei and told travelers to avoid anyone showing signs of respiratory illness. Hong Kong banned Hubei residents from entering.
In Britain, Health Secretary Matt Hancock told MPs that “all possible means” were being used to reach the 1,460 people who had traveled to the UK from Wuhan before the city went into lockdown. He said officials were working with Border Force, airlines, universities, schools and cultural organizations. Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth asked whether the NHS had enough specialist ECMO beds. Hancock said four centers were ready: Guy’s and St Thomas’ and the Royal Free in London, plus Liverpool and Newcastle.
France expects to bring home up to a few hundred of the 800 citizens in the Wuhan area, though evacuees will spend 14 days in quarantine. Japan planned charter flights as early as Tuesday for citizens who want to leave Wuhan, Reuters reported. Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said about 430 Japanese nationals were confirmed to be in Hubei.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the immediate health risk in the United States was “currently considered low.” It noted that reported illness ranged from little or no symptoms to severe illness and death.
World Health Organization officials met in Beijing on Monday. Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had urged China last week to keep lockdown measures “short in duration.” Separately, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations said it would begin three programs aimed at a vaccine, working with the WHO and other partners.
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