China counts sharp rise in cases of coronavirus

A mysterious SARS-like virus, that has killed a third person, has spread around China and reached a third Asian country.

The closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan believed to be the source of the outbreak. Picture: AP

A mysterious SARS-like virus has killed a third person, spread around China and reached a third Asian country, authorities said on Monday, fuelling fears of a major outbreak as millions begin travelling for the Lunar New Year in humanity’s biggest migration.

The new coronavirus strain, first discovered in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, has caused alarm because of its connection to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which killed nearly 650 people across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.

Wuhan has 11 million inhabitants and serves as a transport hub, including during the annual Lunar New Year holiday which begins later this week and during which hundreds of millions of people travel across the country to visit family.

A third person was confirmed to have died and 136 new cases were found over the weekend in Wuhan, taking the total number of people to have been diagnosed with the virus in China to 201.

South Korea on Monday reported its first case — a 35-year-old woman who flew in from Wuhan. Thailand and Japan have previously confirmed a total of three cases — all of whom had visited the Chinese city.

No human-to-human transmission has been confirmed so far, but authorities have previously said the possibility “cannot be excluded”. The World Health Organisation said on Monday that an animal seemed the “most likely primary source” with “some limited human-to-human transmission occurring between close contacts”. It said the new cases were the result of increased searching and testing.

Health authorities in Beijing’s Daxing district said two people who had travelled to Wuhan were treated for pneumonia linked to the virus and were in stable condition.

At Beijing’s crowded central railway station, some travellers wore masks as a precaution but were not too concerned about the virus. “Watching the news, I do feel a little worried. But I haven’t taken precautionary measures beyond wearing regular masks,” said Li Yang, a 28-year-old account manager heading home to Inner Mongolia for the Lunar New Year.

A seafood market is believed to be the centre of the outbreak in Wuhan, but health officials say some patients had no history of contact with the site.

Scientists at Imperial College in London warned in a paper published on Friday that the number of cases in the city was likely to be closer to 1700, much higher than the number officially identified.

Hong Kong has stepped up screening for the virus at border crossings. Passengers are also being screened at some airports in Thailand and the US.

AFP