Death toll rises to 106; Americans flee Wuhan
U.S. Consulate staffers and other Americans in Wuhan will be evacuated to California on Wednesday as the death toll rose to 106 from a new coronavirus racing through China.
In the U.S., Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Tuesday that the number of cases remained at five, with no deaths. Researchers are still trying to determine the incubation period of the virus and how easily it can be spread by infected people who are not yet experiencing symptoms, he said.
“This is a potentially very serious threat, but at this point Americans should not worry for their own safety,” Azar said.
Azar said U.S. health officials have repeatedly offered to send a team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to China to help. He said talks with Chinese health officials had been positive and he was hopeful that an arrangement could be made.
He may get his wish. The World Health Organization announced that China has agreed to allow international experts to visit China “as soon as possible” to help advance understanding of the outbreak and to guide global response. Wuhan, a city of 11 million in the central China province of Hubei, is the epicenter of the outbreak. The city is one of more than a dozen under tight lockdown.
The State Department said some private, paying U.S. citizens would be added to the charter flight leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport bound for Ontario, California.
About 1,000 Americans are believed to be in Wuhan, although not all want to leave. Some are married to Chinese nationals, who are not eligible for the flight, which is scheduled to carry about 240 passengers and crew.
The State Department said it was working with Chinese officials to identify alternative routes for U.S. citizens to depart Wuhan over land.
Those provided seats on the plane will face health screenings before boarding. The flight will refuel in Anchorage, Alaska, and the state’s Health Department said anyone who appears ill won’t be allowed on the plane. Passengers then will be screened “numerous times” during the flight and again in Alaska before continuing to California, the department said in a statement.