BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - Concerned over the deadly coronavirus outbreak spreading to all regions of China and other parts of the world, several commercial carriers in Europe, Asia and North America are canceling or reducing flights to and from China.
They include British Airways, American Airlines, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Air Canada, United Airlines, Delta, Cathay Pacific, Air India, Finnair, Seoul Air and Hong Kong airlines.
Google, Ikea, Starbucks and Tesla have closed their shops or halted operations in China over coronavirus concerns.
The World Health Organization's Emergency Committee declared the situation a global health emergency, and called on all countries to take urgent measures to contain the respiratory disease.
A meeting of the Emergency Committee on the novel coronavirus in Geneva Thursday determined that the rapidly spreading outbreak constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
The death toll in China has risen to 213 and the number of 2019-nCoV infections nearly reached 10000. Most of the cases are reported in Hubei province. The outbreak was first reported in Wuhan last month. The city of around 11 million now remains in lockdown.
In an effort to contain the novel coronavirus, the Chinese authorities have suspended air, road, and rail travel in the area around Wuhan and placed restrictions on travel and other activities throughout the country.
On Thursday, U.S. Department of State updated its Travel Advisory to Level 4, advising its citizens not to travel to China.
Those currently in China have been urged to consider departing using commercial means. The State Department has requested that all non-essential U.S. government personnel defer travel to China in light of the novel coronavirus.
In the United States, where 5 people were confirmed positive in lab tests, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expanding entry screening to 20 U.S. Ports of Entry with quarantine stations.
Meanwhile, no symptoms of coronavirus were found in any of the 195 U.S. passengers from Wuhan, who were on board a flight that landed at March Air Reserve Base in California. However, they have be asked to stay on the base in quarantine.
CDC is continuing to screen all passengers coming from Wuhan in five international airports.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Thursday confirmed that 2019-nCoV has spread between two people in the United States, representing the first instance of person-to-person spread with this new virus in the country.
Previously, all confirmed U.S. cases had been associated with travel to Wuhan. However, the latest 2019-nCoV patient has no history of travel to Wuhan, but shared a household with the patient diagnosed with coronavirus infection on January 21.
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