Coronavirus: A Global Emergency
On December 19, 2019, China alerted the World Health Organization (WHO) of several cases of pneumonia in Wuhan, a city of about 11 million people. Several of the infected people worked at the Wuhan Seafood Market, which was shut down on December 31, 2019. As Chinese health experts worked to identify the virus amid the rising panic, the number of infections exceeded 40 people; which later turned into hundreds- then thousands- of people. What started out as a small outbreak quickly turned into a global epidemic, with WHO declaring it a global emergency.
Afterward, Chinese officials ruled out the possibility that this was a second SARS outbreak- an illness that originated in China from 2002-2003 and killed more than 770 people worldwide. About a week later, on January 7, these same officials announced that they had identified a new virus: 2019-nCoV, also known as novel coronavirus. They identified it as belonging to the coronavirus family, which includes the aforementioned disease (SARS), and the common cold. Coronaviruses are fairly common and usually spread through proximity with infected people; inhaling droplets generated when infected individuals cough or sneeze, or touching a surface where these droplets landed and then touching one’s face, nose, or any other orifice.
The first fatality happened just two days later, on January 9. The victim was a 61-year-old man who had purchased goods from the seafood market. He was admitted to a hospital and treated; however, this did not improve his symptoms. The death was not officially reported until January 11. The situation only got worse- deaths started being reported outside of China, with the first being in Thailand; the patient was a Chinese woman arriving from Wuhan.
As of today, there are various cities under lockdown in China, affecting over 56 million people. Travel restrictions have also been set in place, with stricter screening for international passengers coming from countries that have reported cases of infected people- this exceeds over 81,000 infections recorded worldwide at the moment, with over 2,700 deaths. The coronavirus has a lower death probability than influenza; however, it may be a full 18 months before a vaccine for this virus is developed- this is what makes it so dangerous. It is also spread very easily, making many susceptible to the virus. This contributes to its high level of riskiness; and explains why many countries are rushing to stop its spread. As of March 1, 2020, there have been 5 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Mexico, with the closest one to us being in Torreón, Coahuila; which is just a 4 hour drive away from Monterrey. As the virus gets closer to us, we have to start taking more precautions; such as washing our hands frequently for 20 seconds at a time and using hand sanitizer after making contact with common surfaces and other people, avoiding contact with sick people, and not touching our eyes, nose, mouth, or face before making sure our hands are completely clean.
*This article was written in late February of 2020. Any updates after this will not be included, as this event could possibly keep developing further.