Ten passengers on board a cruise ship quarantined near Yokohama have been infected with novel coronavirus, Kyodo News reported on Tuesday.
Japan's Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Katsunobu Kato confirmed the news, adding that 273 passengers who had been in contact with the first infected man were tested for the virus.
#CoronaVirus Japan quarantines cruise ship to test 3,700 on board after Hong Kong coronavirus case. pic.twitter.com/h2zDz7zaoK
— Terrence Daniels (Captain Planet) (@Terrence_STR) February 4, 2020
2019-nCov was initially registered in the Chinese city of Wuhan, Hubei province, and since then has spread to 24 countries, with at least 176 cases registered outside China so far.
In China, the number of people who have died from coronavirus has reached 490, with a total of 24,324 people infected with the disease. One fatality was registered in the Philippines.
Out of precaution, airports around the world have introduced security measures to screen incoming passengers for the infection.
