At least 10 on Japan cruise have Coronavirus, says health minister

Doctors take a passenger tested positive for Coronavirus from the cruise ship at Yokohama Port on Wednesday. Pic/AFP

Tokyo: "At least 10 people on a cruise ship quarantined off the coast of Japan have tested positive for the novel Coronavirus (nCoV)," Japan's health minister said on Wednesday.

Japan quarantined the vessel carrying 3,711 people and began testing those on board for the virus after a former passenger who disembarked in Hong Kong was diagnosed with the illness.

Around 25 countries have confirmed cases of the virus, which has killed nearly 500 and infected more than 24,000 in mainland China.

Japan's Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said that specimens were collected from 273 people on board the Diamond Princess. So far, the results of 31 tests are available, with 10 confirmed to have the virus, he said.

The 10 who tested positive were removed from the vessel early morning and sent to medical facilities, the minister added.

The rest of the passengers and crew on board the ship will be required to stay on the vessel for 14 days, Kato said, citing the medical consensus that the new
virus has an incubation period of up to two weeks.

"We ask people on board to behave in a way to avoid infection while we continue the quarantine process," Kato said.

25
Total no. of countries with confirmed cases

Baby tests positive for virus just 30 hours after birth

A baby in China's Wuhan has been diagnosed with the Coronavirus just 30 hours after being born. Experts said it may be a case of 'vertical transmission,' referring to infections passed from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth. The mother had tested positive for the virus before she gave birth.

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