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February
First Major Chinese Airline Suspends Flights Between Mainland China and The US
China Eastern Airlines has become the first major Chinese carrier to suspend flights to and from the United States, as the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has infected thousands of people and prompted several countries to advise their citizens not to travel to mainland China.
The carrier is canceling flights from Shanghai to Los Angeles and New York from February 2 through February 10, citing "the recent public health incident," according to a notice circulated to travel agents and seen by CNN Business.China Eastern did not respond to a request for comment.
The country's two other major carriers, Air China and China Southern, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.China Eastern is also canceling flights from Shanghai to San Francisco on February 6 and February 9, to Chicago on February 8 and to Honolulu from February 3 until March 27, according to the notice.
Several flights to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver that originate in Chengdu or Kunming with layovers in Nanjing or Qingdao have also been canceled this week."In the days to come, China Eastern will pay close attention to the epidemic, and may further adjust the arrangements of flights," the notice said.
Major international airlines including Air Canada, British Airways, Delta, Lufthansa and Qatar have also suspended all flights to mainland China until the end of February or longer.
February
The Japanese government plans to send a fourth evacuation flight to Wuhan to collect about 140 people still in the city and nearby areas, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement Sunday.
Since the first evacuation flight arrived in Tokyo’s Haneda airport Wednesday, 565 Japanese citizens have returned to the country. The Japanese Embassy in China notified the remaining Japanese citizens of the evacuation plan by email Saturday, adding that Tokyo is still negotiating with Beijing to allow spouses with Chinese citizenship to join the fourth evacuation flight.
“We are putting in maximum efforts to make these speedy evacuations possible,” the Japanese Embassy said.
In Japan, coronavirus has infected a total of 20 people, with three returnees testing positive over the weekend. Among the confirmed cases is a man aged in his 30s who was diagnosed as a disease carrier without symptoms. (CNN)
February
President Trump's National Security Adviser Says "there's no reason for Americans to panic" Over the Coronavirus
National security adviser Robert O'Brien on Sunday said at this time "there's no reason for Americans to panic" about the Wuhan coronavirus, saying the threat is "low risk" in the United States.
"Right now, there's no reason for Americans to panic. This is something that is a low risk, we think, in the US," he said during an interview on CBS' "Face The Nation," adding that the virus is a "top priority" for President Donald Trump and the administration is "taking steps to keep Americans safe."
There are more than 16,000 confirmed cases of the virus globally, and more than 350 people have died since the outbreak in December. All but one of the deaths have been in mainland China. Eight cases have been confirmed in the US.
In comparison, the 2019-2020 flu season is projected to be one of the worst in a decade, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The flu virus has infected 19 million Americans across the country and killed at least 10,000 people this season alone.
The White House on Thursday announced a coronavirus task force that "will lead the Administration's efforts to monitor, contain, and mitigate the spread of the virus." It is lead by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and includes members from the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Homeland Security and others. (CNN)
February
Health officials Sunday announced three more cases of the coronavirus in California, bringing the state's total to sixand the country's total to 11 cases.
Late Sunday, a San Benito County official said a man who had recently traveled back from Wuhan, China, and his wife were confirmed to have the virus and isolating themselves in their home.
The man arrived at San Francisco International Airport on January 24 and was screened and found to be healthy and asymptomatic, Dr. Martin Fenstersheib, interim health officer for the county, said in a news conference.
The next day, the man developed symptoms including a cough and low-grade fever, Fenstersheib said. A few days later, his wife began showing symptoms as well.
As far as I'm concerned there is, at the present time, absolutely no risk to the community in San Benito from coronavirus from these confirmed cases,"
The couple has stayed at home since the man's arrival, Fenstersheib said.
Also Sunday, officials confirmed a woman who recently traveled from Wuhan to Santa Clara County also was found to have the virus. She's the second case in the county -- though officials said the cases are unrelated. There are two other confirmed cases in Orange and Los Angeles counties.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concernearlier this week. A number of countries -- including the US -- began evacuating their nationals on flights from Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province in China where the virus was first detected.
The US also issued a level 4 travel advisorywarning residents not to travel to China, adding that most commercial air carriers have reduced or suspended flights to and from the country.
So far, at least 360 people have died and more than 17,000 have been infected in China while there's been more than 170 confirmed cases across more than 20 countries. The San Benito couple's diagnosis is the second person-to-person transmission of the virus.
In Chicago, a woman in her 60s was diagnosed after she returned from Wuhan on January 13. She is in the hospital and doing "quite well," her doctors said.
Last week, the CDC confirmed she had transmitted the virus to her husband, who had not traveled to China. He was in close contact with his wife during a long period of time when she was symptomatic, the Illinois Department of Public Health said.
A student at the Boston campus of the University of Massachusetts was the eight confirmed case. There have been two more confirmed cases of the coronavirus: one in Arizona -- which officials described as an "adult member" of the Arizona State University community -- and one in Washington state -- a man in his 30s who sought treatment after returning from Wuhan.
On Friday, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar declared the coronavirus a public health emergency in the US but stressed the risk remains low and "we are working to keep this risk low."
"All agencies are working aggressively to monitor this continuously evolving situation and to keep the public informed," he said.
As part of that work, Azar announced that any US citizen who has been in Hubei Province in the past two weeks "will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine," he said.
A second evacuation flight from mainland China is set to carry more US citizens out of Wuhan, a US official with knowledge of the matter told CNN. There is still not a definitive time for the plane's arrival in Wuhan.
The first chartered plane arrived in a Southern California air base last week carrying about 200 US citizens -- including diplomats and their families.
The CDC ordered a federal a 14-day quarantine for those passengers -- the first such order in more than half a century. (CNN)