Hong Kong has reported its first death due to the Wuhan coronavirus on Tuesday, February 4, 2020.
The case involved a 39-year-old man who was infected with the virus. According to the South China Morning Post, the patient traveled to Wuhan on January 21 and returned to Hong Kong two days later via the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link.
On January 31, the man, identified as Hong Kong’s 13th 2019-nCoV case, developed a fever and was admitted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital where he was confirmed to be infected with 2019-nCoV. He was then transferred to an isolation ward at Princess Margaret Hospital.
At around 10:30 a.m. on February 4, the Hospital Authority confirmed he died after his condition deteriorated. Medical sources said he suffered from sudden heart failure.
The man's death is the second recorded 2019-nCoV-related death outside mainland China, after the death of a 44-year-old man from Wuhan in a hospital in Manila on Sunday, February 2.
The New York Times says that the man might have spread the disease in his household. While his wife did not travel to Wuhan, she ended up contracting the virus. She, along with their two children and their domestic helper, are now under quarantine.
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Citizens of Hong Kong are now pressuring the government to close down the region's borders to mainland China. Thirteen of the 16 border checkpoints were then shut down, but the rest can still admit Chinese tourists. On Monday, February 3, over 2,500 medical workers went on strike in Hong Kong to demand a fully-closed border (some are still on strike, as of this writing).
To try to control the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus, casinos and related operations in Macao will be closed for two weeks. CNN reports that it has not yet been decided when the suspension of operations will be implemented.
To date, Bloomberg reports there are 15 confirmed Wuhan coronavirus cases in Hong Kong. The global death toll has reached 425, all from mainland China except for the two deaths in the Philippines and Hong Kong.
The Washington Post says there are now 20,438 confirmed cases of the virus in mainland China, including eight in Macao. In Taiwan, there are 10 confirmed cases.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that there are 146 confirmed cases in 23 countries outside China.
The Guardian has also reported that authorities in Shanghai, China have confirmed that a 7-month-old baby has contracted the virus, making her the youngest person to be infected in that city so far.
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