The US upgraded its travel warning for visits to the epicenter of outbreak of pneumonia caused by the newly discovered coronavirus, which originated in a market featuring live poultry and mammals in Wuhan, China, the Department of State said in an alert on Thursday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd January, 2020) The US upgraded its travel warning for visits to the epicenter of outbreak of pneumonia caused by the newly discovered coronavirus, which originated in a market featuring live poultry and mammals in Wuhan, China, the Department of State said in an alert on Thursday.
"US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a Watch Level 3 Alert (Avoid Nonessential Travel) for an ongoing outbreak of pneumonia first identified in Wuhan, China, caused by a novel (new) coronavirus," the alert said.
The epidemic has sickened 571 people and killed 17 in China, with isolated cases contracted during recent visits to the Wuhan region reported in the United States, Japan, South Korea and Thailand, according to media reports.
China has sealed Wuhan and other nearby cities by closing airports, train stations and long-distance bus service on the eve of the Lunar New Year Holiday, in which Chinese typically travel to visit relatives.
In addition, major international airports in Europe and the middle East have followed a US lead by screening arriving travelers infected regions.
The novel coronavirus is similar to the virus that caused the 2003 SARS epidemic, which infected more than 8,000 worldwide, with 774 fatalities, according to the World Health Organization.
