2020年3月7日 星期六

Coronavirus Continues to Spread in U.S. as Florida Reports First East Coast Deaths


A man wears a medical mask on the AirTrain as concern over the coronavirus grows enroute to John F. Kennedy Airport (JFK) on March 7, 2020 in New York City.

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Two people who tested positive for the new coronavirus died in Florida, marking the first known deaths on the East Coast. The two people who died were in their 70s and had traveled overseas, according to officials. These two deaths bring the U.S. death toll from covid-19 to 17, of which 14 were in the state of Washington and one in California. Health officials also said two older male patients in Broward County, Florida had tested positive for the new coronavirus.

The number of suspected cases continued to spread, and half of all U.S. states have confirmed cases. There are a total of 312 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in the United States and that does not count the 21 people who have tested positive in a cruise that is being held off the coast of California. There are about 3,5000 people aboard the Grand Princess, which will be taken to an unspecified non-commercial port, where everyone will be tested. “Those that need to be quarantined, will be quarantined. Those that require additional medical attention will receive it,” Vice President Mike Pence told reporters. That seemed to contradict what President Donald Trump had expressed Friday afternoon, when he said that he would prefer to keep passengers on the cruise. “I don’t need to have the [infection] numbers double because of one ship that wasn’t our fault, and wasn’t the fault of the people on the ship either,” he said. “I can live either way with it. I’d rather have the people stay on, personally.”

Even as officials tried to bring calm to a jittery public, music festivals and conferences are being canceled. Some universities are also taking measures to avoid public gatherings with Stanford University and the University of Washington both saying classes would not meet in person as of Monday.

Globally, more than 100,000 cases of the new coronavirus have been confirmed and more than 3,400 people have been killed. Around 3.4 percent of confirmed cases have died, according to the World Health Organization.

In China, a hotel that was being used for observation of peope who had been in contact with coronavirus patients collapsed, trapping 70 people.

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