Chinese state media say the city of Wuhan is shutting down outbound flights and trains as the country battles the spread of a new virus that has sickened hundreds and killed 17.
The official Xinhua News Agency said Thursday the city also asked people not to leave Wuhan without specific reasons.
The state-owned People’s Daily newspaper said in a tweet that no one would be allowed to leave the city starting at 10 a.m. and that train stations and the airport will shut down. It said city buses, subways, ferries and long-distance shuttle buses would also be temporarily closed, citing Wuhan authorities.
In Geneva, the World Health Organization said it had put off deciding whether to declare the outbreak a global health emergency and asked its expert committee on the issue to continue their meeting for a second day Thursday. The organization defines a global emergency as an “extraordinary event” that constitutes a risk to other countries and requires a coordinated international response.
The death toll associated with the Wuhan coronavirus has risen to 17, as more reports are surfacing of suspected outbreaks in Russia, Mexico and Africa.
The latest death toll was reported Wednesday by Sina Weibo, a Chinese microblogging website and one of the nation’s biggest social media platforms with more than 445 million monthly active users. The platform also said there are now 543 confirmed coronavirus cases in China.
On Tuesday, the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control confirmed the first U.S. coronavirus case. The man, in his 30s, is identified as a Snohomish County, Washington, resident, who returned last week from Wuhan. He is being treated at the Providence Regional Medical Center and is in isolation.
According to the CDC, the patient returned from Wuhan on Jan. 15.
»MORE: What is the Wuhan coronavirus?
In Russia, two people have reportedly been hospitalized in St. Petersburg, with virus-like symptoms.
Late Tuesday, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said one person remains under observation as a possible case of the virus.
Initial symptoms of the new coronavirus include fever, cough, tightness of the chest and shortness of breath.
The first cases late last month were connected to a seafood market, and transmission was thought to be occurring from animals to humans. Authorities previously had not confirmed human-to-human transmission.
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, some causing illness in people and others that circulate among animals, including camels, cats and bats, according to the CDC, which is working with the World Health Organization to monitor the outbreak.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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