MSF helps set up Brussels shelter for homeless

A makeshift self-isolation facility for homeless people and migrants suspected of having the new coronavirus was edging closer to completion on Monday in Brussels.

Médecins Sans Frontières and other NGOs are carrying out the operation to build the makeshift camp at a disused warehouse in the Belgian capital.

The facility, which is scheduled to open on Wednesday, will provide food, medical assistance and shelter for at least 56 people, with an option to add another 100 beds if necessary.

Those in the camp will remain in self-isolation for at least 14 days and anyone showing severe symptoms would be taken to hospital.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and could lead to death.

10,836 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Belgium, with at least 513 deaths, according to government figures.