Here are the latest updates from Japan and beyond on the coronavirus outbreak:
As of 10 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 23 (Japan time)
- Hong Kong health authorities said Sunday a man evacuated last week from the coronavirus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan has tested positive for the new coronavirus while under quarantine.
- South Africa has canceled a men's under-23 friendly against Japan over concerns about the current coronavirus outbreak, the Japan Football Association revealed Sunday.
- A Japanese man in his 80s who was on the cruise ship Diamond Princess has died from pneumonia, the health ministry said Sunday, bringing the number of deaths among people who boarded the coronavirus-hit vessel to three.
- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Sunday instructed his government to swiftly draw up a basic policy to curb the spread of the new coronavirus in Japan.
- The number of deaths in China from the novel coronavirus has risen to 2,442 on the mainland, with 648 newly confirmed infections nationwide, the country's health authorities said Sunday.
- South Korean President Moon Jae In on Sunday raised the country's virus alert level to the highest in the four-tier system as the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus topped 600.
- The world-famous Ghibli Museum in Tokyo, featuring the works of Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki, will be closed from Tuesday through March 17 due to the coronavirus outbreak.
- The U.S. State Department on Saturday called for "increased caution" when traveling to Japan, escalating the alert to level 2 on the four-level advisory scale amid reports that a new coronavirus originating in China is spreading in Japanese communities via unknown infection routes.
- The finance chiefs of the Group of 20 major economies on Saturday agreed to coordinate efforts as the new coronavirus outbreak in China emerges as a potential risk to the global economy
- A Japanese woman who left the coronavirus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship earlier this week was confirmed to be infected after returning to her home in eastern Japan despite an initial negative test result, a local government said Saturday.
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan:
- Japan National Tourism Organization's "Guide for when you are feeling ill"
- Multilingual clinic/hospital search available in English, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
https://www.jnto.go.jp/emergency/eng/mi_guide.html - JNTO's "Japan Visitor Hotline"
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas)
http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/content/001328767.pdf - Japan's health ministry hotline
- Available in Japanese only, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0120-565653 - World Health Organization's "Q&A on coronaviruses"
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses