Thailand has become the latest country to report its first death from coronavirus, as the outbreak continues to spread around the world with more than 85,000 people infected.
On Saturday, several European countries announced new cases. Iran revealed another jump in infections, and Qatar became the latest Middle Eastern country to report its first case.
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South Korea, which is grappling with the largest outbreak of the virus outside China, has urged citizens to stay indoors warning of a ‘critical moment’ in the spread of the infection.
This is Hamza Mohamed in Doha taking over from Kate Mayberry in Kuala Lumpur.
Here are the latest updates:
Sunday, March 1
06:30 GMT – Hong Kong dog tests positive for coronavirus
A dog has been quarantined in Hong Kong after it tested “weak positive” for coronavirus, officials said.
Authorities said the canine belongs to a coronavirus patient. To the relief of animal lovers, authorities said there is no evidence yet the virus can be transmitted to man’s best friend.
04:50 GMT – South Korea closes churches to limit virus spread
Churches were closed in South Korea on Sunday with many holding services online instead, according to Reuters.
In the capital, Seoul, about a dozen worshippers were turned away from the Yoido Full Gospel Church, which put a sermon for its 560,000 followers on YouTube, filmed with a small choir instead of all 200 members and 60-strong orchestra.
“I had heard there would be no service, but just came to check as I live nearby, but yes, it is so empty,” said one of them, Song Young-koo, as he left South Korea’s biggest church.
“It’s a wise decision to do it online, since the virus would easily spread at mass gatherings and churches can be no exception.”
For the first time in its 236-year history, South Korea’s Catholic church decided to halt masses at more than 1,700 locations nationwide. Buddhist temples have also called off events, while major Christian churches held online services.
Churches were closed and services held online on Sunday as South Korea stepped up efforts to contain the spreading coronavirus by limiting public gatherings [Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo]
04:36 GMT – Thailand records first coronavirus death
Thailand has recorded its first fatality in the coronavirus outbreak, Reuters reported citing Suwanchai Wattanayingcharoen, director-general of the Department of Disease Control.
The 35-year-old man also had dengue fever, Suwanchai told a news conference on Sunday.
04:20 GMT – Armenia patient had returned from Iran
More details are emerging about the Armenian case.
The patient is a 29-year-old citizen who returned to Armenia from Iran on Friday and went to a doctor because he was feeling unwell, Reuters said citing the Facebook page of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
“He is now in good condition,” Pashinyan said, adding that authorities planned to isolate those had been in contact with him.
Armenia closed its borders with neighbouring Iran a week ago. It has also suspended flights to the country.
04:15 GMT – Australia reports new coronavirus case
Australia said on Sunday that it had confirmed an additional case of the coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 26.
A scanning electron microscope image of SARS-CoV-2 (the round gold objects) emerging from the surface of cells cultured in a lab from a patient in the United States. SARS-CoV-2, also known as 2019-nCoV, is the virus that causes COVID-19. [National Institutes of Health via EPA]
03:50 GMT – Armenia reports first coronavirus case
Armenia’s prime minister said the central Asian nation had recorded its first case of the coronavirus, Reuters reported.
02:32 GMT – American Airlines says suspending Milan flights
American Airlines said it would suspend flights from New York and Miami to Milan because of a “reduction in demand”.
Flights are scheduled to resume on April 25, the airline said in a statement on its website.
02:16 GMT – Australia records first coronavirus death
Australia has recorded its first death from the coronavirus after a 78-year-old man who had been evacuated from the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship died in a Perth hospital.
“Our condolences are with his family and unfortunately he’s the first death we’ve had from coronavirus in Australia,” Andrew Robertson, the chief health officer of Western Australia state, told journalists, according to Reuters.
The man’s wife also caught the virus, but is in stable condition, authorities said.
Australia has reported 25 cases of coronavirus.
The first Australian to die of COVID-19 had been evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship which was quarantined in Yokohama in Japan [Eugene Hoshiko/AP Photo]
01:00 GMT – South Korea reports 376 more coronavirus cases
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said 376 more cases of coronavirus were reported in the country, most of them in the hardest-hit city of Daegu and the province of Gyeong-buk.
No new deaths were reported.
The country now has a total of 3,526 cases.
The KCDC will release a further update at 07:00 GMT on Sunday.
00:01 GMT – China reports 573 new coronavirus cases, 35 deaths
Mainland China reported 573 new confirmed coronavirus cases on February 29, up from 427 on the previous day, the country’s health authority said on Sunday.
The number of deaths stood at 35, down from 47 on the previous day, bringing the total death toll in mainland China to 2,870.
Of the deaths, 34 were in Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak. The province also saw 570 of the new cases
Click here to read updates from Saturday, February 29.
The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.
It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.
Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”
Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.
Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.
On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.
Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”
But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”
“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.
Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.
Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.
Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.
“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.
“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
