France on Saturday reported the first coronavirus death outside Asia. The victim was an 80-year-old Chinese tourist who was initially turned away by two French hospitals and had a serious lung infection.
The man tested positive for the virus in late January and had been in isolated in intensive care at a Paris hospital, the health ministry said. Local media said he arrived in France on 16 January and was hospitalized on 25 January. Other media, however, previously reported that the patient arrived in France on 23 January and quickly fell ill.
The patient was from China’s Hubei province, which includes the epicenter of the outbreak, Wuhan. All the previous coronavirus deaths outside China were so far in Asia: one each in Japan, the Philippines and Hong Kong.
France’s health ministry said the patient’s daughter also tested positive for the virus and was admitted to a hospital for treatment, but is doing well and should be able to leave soon.
As of Saturday, four of France’s 12 confirmed coronavirus cases were declared cured and were released, while seven others remained hospitalized.
France confirms first coronavirus death outside Asia
EPA-EFE/IAN LANGSDON
A passenger is silhouetted in a bay window facing Air France airplanes at Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport, outside Paris, France, 30 January 2020. Air France cabin crew unions are calling to halt flights to China in a bid to reduce staff exposure to Coronavirus. Three cases of the Wuhan coronavirus have been identified in France, the Health Ministry announced on 24 January. The coronavirus, called 2019-nCoV, originating from Wuhan, China, has spread to all the 31 provinces of China as well as more than a dozen countries in the world. The outbreak of coronavirus has so far claimed 170 lives and infected more than 8,000 others, according to media reports.
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