Several countries, including the United States and France, are mobilizing on Tuesday to organize the evacuation of their nationals from Wuhan, the epicenter of an epidemic of viral pneumonia, the toll of which now exceeds 100 dead in China.
Death toll rises to 106
The number of victims has jumped to 106 dead and that of confirmed cases exceeds 4,500 across China, according to a report by the authorities on Tuesday. The city of Beijing on Monday reported its first death, a 50-year-old man returned from Wuhan.
The World Health Organization (WHO), which judges the threat "high" without triggering an international health alert, said on Monday that it did not yet know if the infected were contagious before presenting the symptoms of the disease , as claimed by some Chinese health officials.
First cases in Germany and Canada
Around fifty patients have already been identified in the rest of the world, and a dozen countries have been infected with the virus, from Asia and Australia to Europe and North America.
A first case of contamination was confirmed Monday in Germany, which becomes the second country affected in Europe after France.
Chinese virus in France: symptoms and prevention
A first case of coronavirus infection has also been confirmed in Toronto in a man who is also said to have infected his wife, health officials in Canada announced on Monday where 19 other people are being examined in Ontario.
Many countries have stepped up precautionary measures at their borders, with Mongolia becoming the first to close road crossings with China.
