EU raises risk level to ‘high’ amid rising coronavirus cases

The European Union (EU) has raised the risk level of coronavirus from ‘moderate’ to ‘high’ as the cases around the world continue to grow. Speaking at a news conference on March 2, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control raised the risk level looking at the concerning situation.

“While we should not give in to panic, the situation is likely to still get worse. So we need to be prepared. Time is of the essence here,” said Janez Lenarčič, EU’s Crisis Management Commissioner.

Government and companies in Europe have started taking drastic measures in the wake of coronavirus with Italy reporting the most number of deaths in the continent. After an employee of the BMW Group was tested positive of the virus in Munich, the company reportedly quarantined 150 German employees.

Concerns in the Middle East

Iran has become a major concern for the Middle East as it has already reported 54 deaths which include an Iranian lawmaker and an adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. However, the official data contradicts with an international media report which said that the virus has claimed more than 210 lives in the country. 

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The fear of a pandemic is also looming large as India has confirmed two new cases of the deadly virus. The Health Ministry released a statement saying one positive case has been detected in New Delhi and one case in Telangana. The person from Delhi has a travel history with Italy, the European nation which has reported deaths due to coronavirus. The ministry has not revealed any further details regarding the identity of the patients and said that they are stable and being closely monitored.

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According to the latest report, 42 new deaths in China due to coronavirus infections have been confirmed, taking the total death toll because of the deadly virus to nearly 2,900. While most of the cases are from Hubei province of China and the city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, other countries, including the United States, Iran, Italy, and Japan, have also now reported deaths related to COVID-19.

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