A new viral infection that started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan has been detected in Thailand and Japan, according to the officials of those countries. 

Where has the virus spread to?

Aside from Thailand and Japan, South Korea and Vietnam have also stated that they may be dealing with the new form of coronavirus, which is included in the same family as SARS or severe acute respiratory syndrome virus that caused death to more than 700 people worldwide after starting in China in 2003. Almost 80 new cases have also been reported in Hong Kong. 

The spread of the coronavirus comes as health officials from China announced that it was responsible for the deaths of two people in Wuhan. The authorities said that they did some tests and it confirmed that there are now 41 cases of the coronavirus in China. 

According to the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or CDC, most coronaviruses result in mild symptoms, like a common cold. However, the classification of the disease can put it in the same family as the SARS virus and MERS or the Middle East respiratory syndrome, both of which killed hundreds of people worldwide. 

Health officials from China have stated that currently, there is no evidence of transmission of the virus but Hong Kong's Secretary for Food and Health, Sophia Chan, stated that it is too early to rule it out. A professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan, Arnold Monto, said that it may take time to determine how the coronavirus spreads.  

All of the six known coronaviruses that have been discovered in humans can spread between people according to a virologist and SARS expert at the University of Hong Kong, Leo Poon. He said that experts still do not know what the source of the virus is and what it looks like. 

According to the CDC, the coronavirus can be spread through the air by sneezing and coughing, and through close personal contact. The novel coronavirus has been connected to a seafood market that has been closed for sanitation since January 1, 2020, and experts are still trying to learn more about the said illness. 

How serious is the novel coronavirus outbreak?

In China, two people have died, according to the National Health Commission and the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission. The first confirmed death was that of a 61-year-old man, and the second confirmed death was that of a 69-year-old man who was later admitted to the hospital with severe damage to numerous organs and abnormal renal function. 

According to the health bureau in Wuhan, 41 patients have been diagnosed with the virus, including 5 people who were in critical condition. Some of the patients of the virus operated stalls at the seafood market and they believed to be at the center of the outbreak. All of the patients are now in quarantine and around 119 people are still under medical observation. The symptoms of the virus may include difficulty in breathing and fever, according to the World Health Organization. 

In Hong Kong, there has been a demand for face masks and supplies of the N95 mask. It has been sold out at many stores according to a report on January 7, 2020. The authorities of the city are now urging those with respiratory symptoms and fever to wear a mask for protection. 

How are authorities responding?

Governments from affected countries are now stepping up their precautionary measures. The Hospital Authority in Hong Kong has imposed shorter visiting hours at numerous hospitals and they require visitors to wear masks. Temperature checks using the thermal imaging system are now implemented in the airports in mainland China, Singapore and Hong Kong. 

Infrared temperature screening devices are now installed at four airports in Thailand that serve flights from Wuhan. The Center for Disease Control in Taiwan has now asked doctors and quarantine officials at their airports to immediately notify the bureau of patients who have arrived from Wuhan and exhibit any of the symptoms.  

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