From the newspaper not afraid to panic first... WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE!
● Terror as Chinese death bug sweeps the world ● Boffins expect ‘vast numbers’ to be infected ● Plans are ‘in place’ for mass cremations
AUTHORITIES are braced to place “massive” orders for body bags and even plan mass BONFIRES for dead bodies if the Chinese death bug turns into a UK epidemic.
It’s feared the deadly coronavirus – which has so far killed six and laid low more than 300 people – could be on its way here after officials found it could be spread by saliva.
China’s National Health Commission confirmed that the never-before-seen bug had spread and could sweep around the world in days, infecting “vast numbers” of people.
A source said: “This is a nightmare scenario. A killer disease that spreads as easily as the common cold. Forget global warning. We’re all going to be DEAD before the sea levels rise.”
Taiwan yesterday confirmed its first case of the lethal bug, which has killed six in the Chinese megacity of Wuhan, home to 11million people.
The news came as the mayor of Wuhan – at the centre of the outbreak – announced two more victims of the lethal SARS-like infection.
Timebomb
The huge numbers of people there make it an ideal breeding ground for new bugs and low standards of hyience make it a “biological timebomb”, say boffins.
But cases have also cropped up in Thailand, South Korea, Japan, Australia and the Philippines.
World Health Organisation officials will be holding an emergency meeting later in the week to discuss the outbreak, with cases having risen six-fold in the space of days.
Officials in the UK have told NHS hospitals how to deal with potential cases, as fears grow that the outbreak will spread over the Chinese New Year holidays, when millions of Chinese residents are set to travel.
In London, contingency plans have been drawn up that include building up reserves of body bags and decontamination units.
If the plague goes critical, local authorities will be expected to build huge foot-and-mouthstyle funeral pyres on which corpses can be incinerated.
A source said: “We’re looking through the gates of Hell. We could all die.”
Professor Zhong Nanshan, leader of China’s National Health Commission’s expert team, revealed the virus is likely to be spread by saliva in a press conference.
He told the meeting: “As of now, it is affirmative that the new strain of coronavirus can be passed between humans.
“The virus is spread through respiratory system and distance of impact is not long, but it is possible the virus was passed after being stuck to saliva.”
Professor Nanshan said officials must “quarantine the patients and stop them from contacting others”.
Stock markets in China and Hong Kong dipped amid fears tourists will stay away, despite being told not to panic.