Governments around the world are trying to take steps to address the ever-changing outbreak of a new coronavirus, which since December has infected more than 118,000 people and killed about 4,300 in 114 countries.The virus, known officially as COVID-19, first emerged in China, where health officials Wednesday reported 24 new cases.People wait in a queue to get temperature check before entering a bank in Beijing, March 11, 2020.While the increase represents a sustained decline from the height of the outbreak in China, the country where the government puts cities on lockdown to prevent inter-community spread is now dealing with an increase in the number of cases arriving from other nations.That prompted officials in Beijing to order anyone arriving to go into a 14-day quarantine.Italy follows China’s playbook Italy has followed China’s playbook after becoming a secondary center of the outbreak with more than 10,000 reported cases so far and cases in numerous other countries linked to people who traveled from Italy.  Italians were under a second day of a nationwide lockdown Wednesday with people only able to move around for urgent health and work reasons.Officials in the United States are showing increased concern as the number of cases there surpassed 1,000.  Medics transport a patient through heavy rain into an ambulance at Life Care Center of Kirkland, the long-term care facility linked to several confirmed coronavirus cases in the state, in Kirkland, Washington, March 7, 2020.US outbreak pockets
There are pockets of outbreaks in the western state of Washington, where the governor is expected to announce a ban on gatherings of more than 250 people, and across the country in New York where that state’s governor is instituting an isolation zone around a community with more than 100 reported cases.Most people who contract the new coronavirus experience mild or moderate symptoms, but some, mainly older people and those with existing health problems, are at risk for more serious illness.The World Health Organization recommends people wash their hands, avoid touching their face, maintain distance from anyone who is coughing or sneezing, and stay home if they feel ill.Recommendations to avoid large gatherings of people have led to numerous event cancellations around the globe.Police officers wearing masks patrol an empty St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, March 11, 2020.Vatican live-streams mass
Pope Francis gave a live-streamed mass from inside the Vatican on Wednesday, and the Vatican’s representative in East Timor said the pope would not be making an expected trip there later this year.A Premier League match between British football clubs Manchester City and Arsenal set for Wednesday night was postponed after several Arsenal players and staff members went into self-quarantine linked to contact with the owner of another club who tested positive for the virus.Popular Coachella festival canceled
In the United States, organizers of the Coachella music festival moved the April event to October.  And a Sunday debate between Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders will go on without anyone in attendance.
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