China's Hubei province enacts 'wartime' measures as coronavirus count rises to 16,427
Coronavirus is continuing to spread throughout China and especially in the epicenter Hubei province, the World Health Organization said in a Friday update briefing on COVID-19.
There are 47,505 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 throughout China with 1,381 deaths reported from the pneumonia-like illness it causes, including 121 deaths reported in the past day. Six of those who died were health care workers — "a critical piece of information" as WHO continues to investigate why even rigorous medical guidelines haven't stopped the spread, WHO reported Friday.
A total of 1,716 health care workers in China have contracted COVID-19 despite WHO's guidelines, so this weekend, a team of 12 international and WHO experts will arrive in China to meet with local medical professionals for a "joint mission." The experts will particularly look at disease transmission and response measures to see how processes for health care workers, who "are working with virtually no sleep in difficult conditions," can be improved, WHO said.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Meanwhile, Hubei, home to the epicenter city of Wuhan, is "enacting 'wartime' measures" as the number of confirmed cases in the province has climbed to 16,427. The measures include blocking people from going outside, "sealing off residential complexes and allowing only essential vehicles on the roads," The Washington Post reports. The virus has kicked off an "economic fallout" throughout China, with flower sales reportedly falling as much as 95 percent this Valentine's Day, the Post continues.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
West End Girl: a ‘tremendously touching’ break-up albumThe Week Recommends Lily Allen’s unfiltered new work is ‘littered with relatable moments’
-
Are car headlights are too bright?The Explainer 82% of UK drivers concerned about being ‘dazzled’ as LED bulbs become more common
-
What you need to know about last-minute travelThe Week Recommends You can book an awesome trip with a moment’s notice
-
Warner Bros. explores sale amid Paramount bidsSpeed Read The media giant, home to HBO and DC Studios, has received interest from multiple buying parties
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial uneaseSpeed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B dealspeed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to ChinaSpeed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B dealSpeed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
