“30,000 Australians a day will still catch the virus as the outbreak peaks,” predict health professionals.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has now declared Coronavirus infection is causing a pandemic.
A pandemic is the worldwide spread of a new disease. The virus is airborne and is highly infectious caught through exposure from respiratory droplets.
Australia is effectively in lockdown as of today, after big changes at our borders overnight.
Here is the latest data for those who struggle to wrap their heads around what is actually happening around the world.
Latest DATA:
• 142 countries have cases of corona virus
• Death toll worldwide at 5,844 people
• 73,968 people have recovered after treatment and isolation
• More than 156,000 people around the world have been infected
• France and Spain are following Italy into lockdown while the US has expanded its travel ban to include the UK.
AUSTRALIA:
• 298 cases of coronavirus in Australia have been confirmed
• 5 Australians have been confirmed dead
• Cases doubling on average every 4 days
• ASX has plunged almost 7 per cent
• Researchers in RBWH request donations and government funding of $750,000 to run clinical trials and find the cure for Covid-19
• Intensive care specialist professor John Fraser, is seeking help to convince the Federal Government to fund a million-dollar initiative to research and find cure for Covid-19
• Australian border protection authorities introduced new measures
• Anyone arriving from overseas including returning Aussies will have to self-isolate for 14 days. The new arrangements will stay in place indefinitely
• Restrictions extend to Australia’s ports with a 30-day ban on international cruise ships
• The vast majority of schools remain open apart from some private schools in Victoria and NSW and Queensland who are sending student home for remote learning
• Concerns parliament house could become a coronavirus ‘hotspot’
• Non-essential gatherings of over 500 people are banned
• Social distancing measures – ie. handshakes and physical contact have been banned to protect those at risks
• Government predicts that around 30,000 Australians a day will still catch the virus as the outbreak peaks
READ MORE: Victoria declares a state of emergency to combat spread of coronavirus
Additional data:
• December 31, China alerted the World Health Organisation to an unknown virus in Wuhan
• 14 days later the first case of coronavirus was reported in Thailand before spreading all around the world
• First case reported in Australia on the 25th January
• Italy and South Korea peaked first
Up to 80 per cent of people exposed to coronavirus will have mild respiratory symptoms or no symptoms and recover without needing any special treatment, but the vulnerable groups – the unwell, the elderly, people with chronic diseases and those who are immunocompromised are most at risk of becoming seriously unwell, and can result in death.
Symptoms of Coronavirus infection include fever, fatigue and dry cough. Other less frequent symptoms include sore throat, aches and pains, nasal congestion, shortness of breath and diarrhoea.
The Government advice is not to travel to China and Iran due to the high risk of coronavirus infection.
Many countries are introducing travel restrictions such as New Zealand, Italy and South Korea.
As the pandemic of coronavirus continues to spread worldwide, this advice will change with time.