It’s official. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has just declared the Wuhan Virus outbreak a global health emergency.
Thanks for that Captain Obvious.
Why do you ask?
Well, the number of people in China who have succumbed to the dreaded virus has increased to a whopping 213.
A global health emergency basically means that the virus is widespread and isn’t going anywhere soon.
And it’s no wonder that the declaration was made: The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in China reached an all-time high of 9,692 as another 1,982 cases were confirmed.
The total number of Wuhan Virus cases has exceeded that of the number of confirmed cases of SARS.
Just a day prior, the total number of confirmed Wuhan Virus cases was 7,700, evidently showing a rather alarming spike.
This figure will undoubtedly rise.
The province in China, Hubei which is at the very core of the outbreak saw another 42 deaths from the treacherous Wuhan Virus.
This increased the total number of deaths in Hubei province alone to 204 deaths.
Centres For Disease Control Says Virus Isn’t Spreading Widely
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States pointed out that the virus is not spreading widely and that the risk to the US public is low.
This comes after the first case of human-to-human transmission was reported in the United States after a woman travelled to China before infecting her husband with the virus.
Despite all of this, the United States says it is imperative that we do not project anti-China sentiments.
They commended the way China had responded to the disease, for example by building a new hospital in just 10 short days.
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “This is the time for facts not fear,” he said. “This is the time for science not rumours. This is the time for solidarity not stigma.”
While China’s UN ambassador Mr Zhang Jun said, “We are still at a very critical stage in fighting the coronavirus. International solidarity is extremely important and for that purpose all countries should behave in a… responsible manner.”
