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First death from coronavirus outside of China recorded in Philippines

The victim is a 44-year-old resident of Wuhan who came to the Philippines

© EPA-EFE/STRINGER

TASS, February 2. The first death from coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has been documented outside of China in the Philippines, the World Health Organization (WHO) Philippines informed in Twitter.

"A 44-year-old male is confirmed as the second person with the 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV) in the Philippines. He passed away on 1 February 2020," the organization informed. "There are now 2 confirmed 2019-nCoV cases in the Philippines. The 1st confirmed case and the 2nd confirmed case are close contacts. Both are known residents of Wuhan, China. The 44-year-old male experienced fever, cough & sore throat before being admitted at San Lazaro Hospital," the message continued.

"This is the first reported case outside of China. However, we need to keep in mind that he came from Wuhan, China," WHO Representative in the Philippines Dr Rabi Abeyasinghe said, cited by the organization’s Twitter.

The number of people infected with a new type of coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in China has reached 14,380 people, including 304 deaths, the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China informed on Sunday. According to the commission, 2,110 people are in serious condition, 328 people have been discharged from the hospital, and 19,544 Chinese citizens are suspected of having contracted the virus. The officials informed that 163,844 people have been in contact with those infected, while 137,594 are under medical observation.

On December 31, 2019, Chinese authorities informed the WHO about an outbreak of an unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan - a large trade and industrial center in central China populated by 11 million people. The city has since been closed off for entry and exit. Foreign states, including the US and Japan, are evacuating their citizens from Wuhan and the surrounding Hubei province. The Russian Embassy in Beijing is preparing to evacuate 341 Russian citizens currently located in Wuhan and in the Hubei province with the aid of Russian Aerospace Forces aircrafts.

Cases of coronavirus have been detected in 23 countries outside of China, including Russia. On January 30, the WHO declared an international public health emergency over the outbreak of 2019-nCoV.

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