Coronavirus death toll rises to 132 in China; nearly 6,000 infected

The number of people infected by the deadly Coronavirus outbreak has risen to nearly 6,000 in China, reports on Wednesday said. The virus originating from China's Wuhan has claimed the lives of 132 people in the country, while 5,974 new cases have been confirmed. 

By the end of Monday, a total of 4,515 cumulative confirmed cases of novel virus had been reported in Hubei, while 2,567 patients are hospitalised, with 563 in severe conditions and 127 in critical conditions, the Hubei Provincial Health Commission said on Tuesday. Hospitals across the province received 31,934 fever patients on Monday, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Public health experts in Hong Kong had warned on Monday that there could be thousands of more carriers of this new and deadly virus from China, despite sweeping efforts to contain it. 

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World battles against Coronavirus

As the disease continues to spread rapidly, the health authorities around the world are taking action to prevent a global epidemic, with cases reported in Australia, France, the United States and several Asian countries besides China.

The US and Japan airlifted hundreds of their nationals on Wednesday from China's Wuhan, which is the epicentre of the fatal virus. More than 50 million people have been locked down in and around Wuhan, in a bid by authorities to stop an infection that is spreading swiftly across the world.

Thousands of foreigners are among those trapped in the city, and many countries are planning to get rescue their nationals. Moreover, many countries have begun screening of Coronavirus at every international airport in order to prevent it from spreading. Cases reported in countries have arranged isolation rooms in hospitals.

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WHO: "Global risk of Coronavirus Is High"

The World Health Organisation on Monday said the global risk from the deadly virus in China was "high", admitting an error in its previous reports that said it was "moderate".

The UN health body said in a situation report published late Sunday that the risk was "very high in China, high at the regional level and high at the global level". In a footnote, the WHO said there had been an "error" in previous communications published on Thursday, Friday and Saturday which "incorrectly" stated that the global risk was "moderate".

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