Company Scrambles to Track Cambodia Cruise Ship Passengers | Holland America Line said it is working with governments and health experts to track passengers who disembarked from its Westerdam cruise ship docked in Cambodia after an American woman tested positive for coronavirus in Malaysia. The cruise line, which is owned by cruise giant Carnival Corp, said none of the other 1,454 passengers and 802 crew have reported any symptoms, reported Reuters. “Guests who have already returned home will be contacted by their local health department and be provided further information,” a statement from the company said.
Robbers Steal Toilet Rolls in Hong Kong | Armed robbers who stole hundreds of toilet rolls were being hunted by Hong Kong police on Monday, in a city wracked by shortages caused by coronavirus panic-buying. Toilet rolls have become hot property in the densely packed business hub, despite government assurances that supplies remain unaffected by the virus outbreak. Supermarkets have found themselves unable to restock quickly enough.
Govt to Examine Villages Bordering Nepal for Coronavirus | Teams have been constituted by the Union Health Ministry, for examination of villages bordering Nepal for coronavirus, reported All India Radio. Villages that bordering Nepal in the states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Sikkim and West Bengal will be inspected. They will also be made aware about the disease, and its precautionary measures. Five teams of doctors from the National Centre for Disease Control, Safdarjung Hospital, Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, and others, have been set up.
Govt sets up teams to examine villages bordering Nepal for novel #coronavirus infection. https://t.co/b4H9eCRC4C
— All India Radio News (@airnewsalerts)February 17, 2020
Japanese Manufacturers Gloomy | Worries about the spread of the coronavirus and its hit to the global economy kept Japanese manufacturers’ mood gloomy in February, a Reuters poll found, even as firms shook off previous worries about the impact of the Sino-U.S. trade war. The monthly poll, which tracks the Bank of Japan’s key tankan quarterly survey, found business confidence across the sectors weak over the next 3 months, as the coronavirus added to uncertainty over the global outlook and the October national sales tax hike.
‘Contactless’ food pick-ups by McDonalds, Starbucks | With the coronavirus outbreak in China continuing to spread, McDonald’s, Starbucks and other fast-food companies are ramping up “contactless” pickup and delivery services to keep their workers and customers safe, the companies said, reported Reuters. Customers order remotely, on mobile phones or by computers in store, and employees seal the meals in bags and put them in a special spot for pickup without human contact, McDonald’s says on its website. (Image: Reuters/Carlos Garcia Rawlins)
India Will Soon Send Medical Supplies to China | The Indian Ambassador to China Vikram Misri expressed his solidarity with China, and its fight against the novel coronavirus. He also said that India, in its effort to assist in the crisis, will soon send medical supplies to China.
Ambassador @VikramMisri expresses his solidarity with the Chinese people and the government in the fight against #NovelCoronavirus epidemic. As a concrete step to tackle the outbreak, India will soon send a consignment of medical supplies to China. (1/3)@MEAIndia @DrSJaishankar pic.twitter.com/SKd441BubH
— India in China (@EOIBeijing)February 16, 2020
US Evacuation Efforts | A bus believed to carry the US passengers of the quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess, leaves the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, south of Tokyo in Japan. (Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha)
First Death Occurs in Taiwan | Taiwan reported its first death from the new coronavirus Sunday, as the death toll from the outbreak rose to 1,665 inside mainland China, reported AFP. A 61-year-old man from central Taiwan with underlying health problems but no recent overseas travel history died in hospital on Saturday after testing positive for the virus, officials confirmed.
Malaysia Says it Correctly Diagnosed American from Westerdam | Malaysia insisted on Sunday that it had correctly diagnosed coronavirus in an elderly American woman from the Westerdam cruise ship despite all passengers having been given a clean bill of health when they disembarked in Cambodia, reported PTI. The vessel was at sea for two weeks and barred from Japan, Guam, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand over fears it might be carrying the virus which originated in China and has killed more than 1,600 people.
Germans Released from Quarantine | Over a hundred German nationals were Sunday released from quarantine at a military base near Frankfurt airport, two weeks after flying in from the Chinese city of Wuhan, epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, reported PTI. “All the people concerned have been allowed to leave the quarantine zone and rejoin their families,” secretary of state for health Thomas Gebhart told a press conference.
Infected US Citizens Won’t be Evacuated | A US official has said that those Americans infected with the novel coronavirus on the quarantined cruise ship ‘Diamond Princess’ moored off the coast of Japan, “aren’t going anywhere”. While stating that 40 US citizens had been infected on the ship, Anthony Fauci, a senior official at the National Institutes for Health said that those infected, or even showing symptoms of having COVID-19, will not be a part of rescue operations, and would instead be treated at hospitals in Japan.
Coronavirus Death Toll Passes 1,700 | The death toll from China’s new coronavirus epidemic reached 1,770 on Monday after 100 more people died in the hard-hit Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak. In its daily update, the province’s health commission also reported 1,933 new cases. At least 70,400 people have now been infected nationwide.
Source: News18