China Confirms ‘Deadly Virus’ Can Communicate from One Human to Another

The SARS-like virus, which has already spread across China and has reached three other Asian nations, is contagious or communicable from one human being to another, experts confirmed recently, fuelling fears of a major outbreak at a time when millions of Chinese people are travelling for the Lunar New Year holiday.

The coronavirus was discovered for the first time in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, which has caused serious alarm because of its connection to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which has killed nearly 650 people across the Mainland China and Hong Kong between 2002-2003.

This year the total number of people, who have been diagnosed with the virus rose to 218. Beijing and Shanghai also confirmed their first cases this week, while more than a dozen more emerged in southern Guangdong province and 136 new people affected with the virus were found over the weekend in Wuhan. 

According to the local health commission, third death after being affected by the virus occurred in Wuhan. Though scientists are yet to determine the mode of transmission, with a seafood market in Wuhan, it is believed to be the centre of the outbreak.

Zhong Nanshan, a renowned scientist at the National Health Commission who helped expose the scale of the SARS outbreak nearly two decades ago, said patients could contract the new virus without even visiting the city.

He also confirmed, “Currently, it can be said it is affirmative that there is the phenomenon of human-to-human transmission”.

Nanshan also said, that fourteen medical personnel who were helping the coronavirus patients have also been infected and more than 95 of the total cases were related to Wuhan.

Chinese President Xi Jinping reacting on the issue for the first time said that safeguarding the lives of people should be given topmost priority and that the spread of the epidemic should be resolutely contained at the earliest.

Xi said it was necessary to “release information on the epidemic in a timely manner and deepen international cooperation and ensure people have a stable and peaceful Spring Festival”.

Wuhan has 11 million inhabitants and it serves as a major transport hub, which includes the annual Lunar New Year holiday that has begun later this week and sees hundreds of millions of people travel across the country to visit their family.

Meanwhile, apart from China, South Korea on Monday also reported its first case, when a 35-year-old woman flew in from Wuhan. Japan and Thailand have earlier confirmed a total of three cases, all the victims had visited the Chinese city.