The global death toll from COVID-19 has surpassed 30,000, according to John Hopkins University, as President Donald Trump said that he was considering an “enforceable quarantine” in the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area to tackle the coronavirus outbreak.
Trump’s comments came as the number of cases in New York State rose to over 52,000, with 728 deaths.
However, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo meanwhile said he had not spoken to the president about a quarantine, adding: “I don’t know how that could be legally enforceable.”
Elsewhere Italy’s death toll topped 10,000 on Saturday, despite a national lockdown that has been in place for three weeks and Spain suffered its worst day of the epidemic so far, recording 832 deaths on Saturday alone.
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Train services reopened in Wuhan, China
The Chinese city where coronavirus originated has reopened subways and long-distance train service in another step toward ending restrictions that confined millions of people to their homes.
Subway passengers were still required to wear masks and be checked for fever after service resumed Saturday, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. It said signs posted in subway cars tell passengers to sit with empty seats between them.
While most access to Wuhan — a city of 11 million people — was suspended Jan. 23, restrictions have gradually been relaxed. The last controls that block residents of Wuhan from leaving Hubei are due to be lifted April 8.
As of Sunday, China reported five new deaths and 45 new confirmed virus cases. While all the deaths were in Hubei province, all but one of the new cases were people who were infected abroad, according to the National Health Commission.
Global deaths surpass 30,000, John Hopkins University reports
The global death toll from the coronavirus surpassed 30,000 deaths on Sunday, according to John Hopkins University. More than 10,000 of those occurred in Italy.
The disease has now infected over 660,000 people around the world, according to statistics compiled by the university.
The United States has more confirmed cases than anywhere in the world with more than 124,000 cases confirmed as of Sunday. Italy has the second most with 92,472 and China follows with 82,061 cases.
Number of positive tests doubling every three to four days, French PM says
The number of positive coronavirus tests are doubling every three to four days in France, the country’s Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said in televised address on Saturday.
“We are in the midst of a combat that is going to last long,” Edouard Philippe said, adding that the nation which has recorded 37,575 confirmed cases and 2,314 deaths needed to adapt quickly.
Philippe said Friday he had decided to extend the country’s coronavirus lockdown by two weeks until April 15.
Meanwhile, health minister Olivier Veran said that every respirator in France has been requisitioned for use and one billion masks has been ordered from abroad.
Tokyo records biggest single day spike in coronavirus cases: Report
Tokyo recorded 68 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours, Japan’s national broadcaster NHK reported Sunday. It was the largest single-day spike in the Japanese capital.
Three cases were in people who returned from the U.S. and Europe, city officials said. Another 23 cases are of unknown origin, NHK reported.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday promised an unprecedented package of steps to cushion the world’s third-biggest economy from the pandemic, saying the country was close to a national emergency as infections surged.
Nearly 1,700 coronavirus cases have been registered in Japan so far, with a death toll of 52, excluding those from a cruise ship quarantined last month.
Washington state warns COVID-19 patients to self-isolate or risk detention
The public health officer for King County in Washington warned residents with COVID-19 symptoms or pending tests that they could be detained if they don’t self-isolate or check into a hospital.
“To protect the public, if an individual with active COVID-19 is not voluntarily remaining isolated, or if an individual who has COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, and/or difficulty breathing) with a test pending is not remaining self-quarantined, they may be subject to enforcement actions, which could include legal actions for involuntary detention,” said Dr. Jeff Duchin, public health officer for Seattle and King County, in a statement.
Residents are allowed to leave isolation only after three days have passed since recovery and at least seven days after first experiencing symptoms, according to the directive. King County has been one of the hardest-hit areas in the U.S.
More than 10,000 dead in Italy
Italy’s coronavirus death toll topped 10,000 on Saturday, despite a national lockdown that has been in place for three weeks. The news follows a grim 919 deaths related to COVID-19 on Friday, the most in a single day of any country.
Italian officials are considering whether to extend that lockdown into mid-April. In an effort to prevent people from leaving their homes, fines have increased from about $200 to more than $3,000.
