Coronavirus latest updates: over 100,000 cases worldwide confirmed, as two British Airways staff test positive

First cases reported in Vatican City and Serbia, and first deaths in UK and the Netherlands, as WHO warns of sustained community transmissionMore than 100,000 cases, according to the Johns Hopkins UniversityIran threatens use of force to restrict spread of coronavirus‘More scary than coronavirus’: South Korea alerts expose private livesHas Covid-19 mutated? Busting the mythsShare your experiences 1.56pm GMT Thousands of passengers are stuck on board the Grand Princess cruise ship docked on the coast of California while passengers are tested for the coronavirus.Yesterday military helicopters delivered test kits to the ship carrying 3,500 people, of which around 100 have been earmarked for testing.Steve, an American living in London, is particularly concerned for his elderly parents who are on board, saying his mother has developed a “scratchy throat and runny nose” but is not due to be tested as she does not have a fever.Since the Centres for Disease Control guidelines were updated on Wednesday to advise that any patient with relevant symptoms should be tested if a doctor agrees, Steve hopes his mother will be tested soon.His parents are both in their 70s, and his father is on a treatment plan for lung cancer, so if they have been exposed to the virus Steve is keen to get them tested and off the boat as soon as possible. Steve, a 43-year-old product director, said: “They don’t know when they’re going to be off the ship or what the next steps are, so we’re just very concerned that this is going to turn into another situation like what we saw [with the Diamond Princess cruise ship] in Japan.”He said his parents, who live in Maryland, reported that they were initially allowed to use common areas yesterday, before eventually being confined to their cabins.His parents have been on the ship since 22 February, so weren’t on the earlier voyage to Mexico which carried passengers who were later confirmed to have coronavirus, with one subsequently dying from the disease.“They’re not getting much information right now,” Steve said. “It’s only been 36 hours so I’m sure there’s a lot of scrambling but this just happened in Japan so I hope they have better execution this time.” 1.51pm GMT Two boys have been arrested on suspicion of racially assaulting a Singaporean man following the coronavirus outbreak.The suspects, aged 15 and 16, were held for alleged racially aggravated assault following the incident in central London on 24 February, the Metropolitan police said.They have since been released under investigation. Jonathan Mok wrote on Facebook that he was set upon by a group of men and a woman as he walked along Oxford Street towards Tottenham Court Road. Continue reading…
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