WHO explains differences between novel coronavirus and influenza
Australian police charge two Sydney women over toilet paper feud
Two women involved in violent brawl over toilet roll have been charged by police in Australia.
The pair, aged 23 and 60, were issued court attendance notices for affray “following an altercation at a supermarket” in Sydney, New South Wales police said Sunday. They are due to appear at a local court on April 28.
Major supermarket chains in Australia have restricted supplies to one pack per person amid panic buying by residents as people worried about the coronavirus epidemic have stocked up and fears of supply shortages grow.
The number of coronavirus cases in Australia has topped 70 while a man in his 80s became the third person to die from COVID-19 in the country.
Grand Princess cruise ship to dock in Oakland, California
The Grand Princess cruise ship carrying 21 people who have tested positive for coronavirus was cleared by state and federal officials to dock in Oakland, California, Princess Cruises said late Saturday.
The cruise ship with more than 3,500 passengers, was initially supposed to dock Sunday but then amended its statement to say the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made changes to the plan, and it will dock sometime Monday.
At that time officials will “begin disembarking guests who require acute medical treatment and hospitalization,” Princess said. “These guests will be transported to medical facilities in California.”
The cruise line, citing the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, said Californians would be screened, tested and isolated; non-Californians will be taken to facilities in other states; and staff will remain aboard for quarantine and treatment.
The ship traveled to Mexico in February. A Sacramento-area man who had been aboard died of COVID-19, the disease from coronavirus. Two other passengers were hospitalized with the virus in Northern California, officials said. And two Canadians who had been on-board subsequently tested positive.
4 dead in collapse of Chinese hotel used for virus control
At least four people were killed in the collapse of hotel in southeastern China that was being used for medical observation of people who had arrived from areas hit by the coronavirus outbreak, authorities said Sunday.
The sudden collapse of the building on Saturday evening trapped 71 people, the Ministry of Emergency Management said. Thirty-eight had been rescued as of 10:30 a.m. Sunday, including one person in critical condition and four others in serious condition, the ministry said.
More than 1,000 firefighters and seven rescue dogs were dispatched to the site, according to the ministry. News photos showed rescue workers with flashlights climbing over the debris and bringing people out. Rubble was left piled on cars in front of the building.
The Xinjia Express Hotel is in Quanzhou, a coastal city in Fujian province. The city government said it was housing people who had come from coronavirus-hit areas. Most parts of China are quarantining people from such areas for 14 days.
Millions locked down as Italy announces sweeping quarantine
Over a quarter of Italy’s population were locked down by the country’s government Sunday as it closed off the entire Lombardy region, including the city of Milan and more than a dozen other provinces. Around 16 million people were affected.
The government took the drastic action after the country saw its biggest daily increase in coronavirus cases since an outbreak erupted there last month. The number of cases confirmed in the country now stands at 5,883, with close to half that number — 2,651 — hospitalized. More than 230 people have died from COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus.
“We want to protect the health of all citizens,” Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said. “We are aware that this will create unease and that these measures will be a sacrifice, big and small. But this is the time to be responsible.”
Sunday’s decree restricts anyone from leaving or entering designated red zones except for ”undeferrable work needs or emergency situations” starting Sunday through at least April 3, Conte added.
People are changing their normal routines
People are altering their normal routines in ways large and small to keep the virus at bay.
We give you 10 tips for changes you can make. They include: Don’t take your reusable cup to Starbucks, listen to music at home instead of going to shows and try not to shake hands.
Washington, D.C., reports its first coronavirus case
District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Washington’s first coronavirus case Saturday.
The patient was described as a resident in his 50s who appears to have contracted the virus in late February, when he started feeling ill, she said.
She said it was not known how the man contracted the virus. He “appears to have no history of international travel and no close contacts with a confirmed case,” Bowser said.
Bowser said local health officials were monitoring 11 residents who had symptoms consistent with the coronavirus illness, COVID-19. Tests for nine of them were negative, she said, and results for another were pending.
