New Zealand extends state of emergency to stop spread of COVID-19

WELLINGTON - New Zealand is extending the state of national emergency for a further seven days to help stop the spread of COVID-19, the Minister of Civil Defence Peeni Henare said in a statement.

The initial declaration on March 25 lasted seven days and can be extended as many times as necessary.

"Extending the State of National Emergency ensures we have all the resources, support and powers we need to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our communities," Henare said. —Reuters

Google offers $800 million to pandemic-impacted businesses, health agencies

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, Google on Friday pledged $800 million worth of support for health organizations, researchers and businesses impacted by the crisis.

The aid will come in the form of cash, ad credits, and cloud services from the California-based internet colossus, according to chief executive Sundar Pichai.


Google will provide $250 million in ad grants to the World Health Organization and more than 100 other public agencies around the world providing information to stem the spread of the coronavirus, according to Pichai.

Some $340 million worth of free advertising will be made available to small- or medium-sized businesses in Google’s network that are taking financial hits as people stay home due to virus risk.

“We hope it will help to alleviate some of the cost of staying in touch with their customers,” Pichai said in a blog post.

A pool of $20 million world of credits for services hosted in the Google “cloud” will be available to researchers and academic institutions exploring ways to combat the deadly pandemic or that are tracking critical data about its spread.

Google will also match as much as $10,000 in donations its employees make to organizations in their communities this year, increasing the amount from $7,500.

“Together, we’ll continue to help our communities—including our businesses, educators, researchers and nonprofits—to navigate the challenges ahead,” Pichai said.

Google has been working with partners to ramp up production of protective gear such as face masks for healthcare providers.

Employees from Alphabet divisions including Google, Verily and X are also working with equipment makers to increase the production of ventilators needed to keep some COVID-19 sufferers alive, according to Pichai.

Agence France-Presse

Northern Ireland sportswear factory scrubs up in virus fight

As other factories fall silent due to the coronavirus, the din of production continues at O'Neills sportswear factory in Northern Ireland, where staff have pivoted to making scrubs and facemasks for besieged healthcare workers.

"You always feel proud of your product," business development manager Orla Ward told AFP.

"But this is just on another level because you really are getting it to the people that need it most at this really critical time."


Around 750 staff at the factory in Strabane, which makes kits and leisurewear primarily for Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) sports, were temporarily laid off as the COVID-19 crisis unfolded.

Teams and groups playing GAA sports -- such as hurling and Gaelic football -- began to postpone events and matches as the British and Irish governments restricted gatherings in a bid to stem infections.

"Our business was just basically drying up," Ward explained.

"Over the period of basically two weeks our order book went from extremely busy to practically nothing whatsoever."

But with the factory switching to produce scrubs for local operations of Britain's National Health Service (NHS), 150 staff have been able to return to work.

The news has been a small mercy for the town of Strabane, where the factory is the biggest employer.

- 'Tsunami' of patients -

It has also had an effect on a national scale, boosting Britain's efforts as it prepares for a "tsunami" of new coronavirus patients.

Healthcare workers across Britain have complained of a lack of protective equipment for staff, who are at higher risk of contracting COVID-19.

"The managing director had been speaking to people here in the local hospital and realised that they were in desperate need of scrubs," said Ward.

Ranks of the skilled machinist staff were back at their stations on Thursday, separated from each other under "social distancing" guidelines designed to slow the spread of the virus.

Surrounded by spools of vibrant thread and wearing masks made in the factory, they sewed the maroon fabrics which will soon be worn by frontline NHS staff.

Production began at the O'Neills Strabane location on Wednesday after the fabrics were dyed, given antibacterial treatment and shipped from Dublin -- where the firm is headquartered.

The Strabane factory is currently working to meet an order of 5,000 scrubs -- consisting of a set of trousers, a top and a mask.

"I think there's absolutely a great sense of pride that we can do this," said Ward.

"When you're faced with a challenge, look how quickly and how well you can step up to the plate and really help."

Agence France-Presse

Coronavirus could become seasonal: top US scientist

WASHINGTON, United States — There is a strong chance the new coronavirus could return in seasonal cycles, a senior US scientist said Wednesday, underscoring the urgent need to find a vaccine and effective treatments.

Anthony Fauci, who leads research into infectious diseases at the National Institutes of Health, told a briefing the virus was beginning to take root in the southern hemisphere, where winter is on its way.

"What we're starting to see now... in southern Africa and in the southern hemisphere countries, is that we're having cases that are appearing as they go into their winter season," he said.

"And if, in fact, they have a substantial outbreak, it will be inevitable that we need to be prepared that we'll get a cycle around the second time.

"It totally emphasizes the need to do what we're doing in developing a vaccine, testing it quickly and trying to get it ready so that we'll have a vaccine available for that next cycle."

There are currently two vaccines that have entered human trials — one in the US and one in China — and they could be a year to a year-and-a-half away from deployment.

Treatments are also being investigated — some new drugs and others that have been repurposed, including the antimalarials chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine.

"I know we'll be successful in putting this down now, but we really need to be prepared for another cycle," Fauci concluded.

Fauci's comments suggesting the virus does better in colder weather than it does in hot and humid conditions follows a recent Chinese research paper — still preliminary and awaiting peer-review — that reached the same conclusion.

The reasons are thought to include that respiratory droplets remain airborne for longer in colder weather, and that cold weather weakens immunity.

Another potential reason is that viruses degrade more quickly on hotter surfaces, possibly because a protective layer of fat that envelops them dries out quicker.

But reduced infection rate does not mean the virus gets eliminated — Australia has had almost 2,500 confirmed cases and 8 deaths, for example.

Agence France-Presse

UK govt orders three-week lockdown to tackle virus

LONDON, United Kingdom — Britain on Monday ordered a three-week lockdown to tackle the spread of coronavirus, shutting "non-essential" shops and services, and banning gatherings of more than two people.

"Stay at home," Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a televised address to the nation, as he unveiled unprecedented peacetime measures after the country's death toll climbed to 335.


The announcement came after outrage in government that recommendations about reducing social contact to minimise close-contact transmission of the virus were being ignored.

Crowds of people were seen enjoying weekend spring sunshine in parks and countryside across the country, prompting calls for tougher action to be imposed.

"From this evening (Monday) I must give the British people a very simple instruction — you must stay at home," Johnson said.

"Because the critical thing we must do is stop the disease spreading between households."

Under the new measures, Johnson said going out to shop for basic necessities was still allowed, as was exercise, medical needs, and travel to and from work.

But shops selling items such as clothes or electronics as well as libraries, playgrounds and places of worship would be shut, with the ban also extending to weddings and baptisms but not funerals.

Parks will remain open but Johnson warned: "If you don't follow the rules the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings."

He called the pandemic "the biggest threat this country has faced for decades" and said the already overstretched state-run National Health Service (NHS) would be unable to cope if the pace of transmission continues.

"I urge you at this moment of national emergency to stay at home, protect our NHS and save lives," he said.

The restrictions will be "under constant review", he added.

"We will look again in three weeks, and relax them if the evidence shows we are able to," he said. 

"But at present there are just no easy options. The way ahead is hard, and it is still true that many lives will sadly be lost."

'War-footing'

Britain recorded its first death in the outbreak on March 5 but has been criticised for its light-touch approach to containing the spread compared to more stringent measures elsewhere.

Latest figures show Britain now has 6,650 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with warnings the virus is taking hold quicker than in Italy at the same point.

Italy has suffered the most coronavirus deaths worldwide, with 6,077 fatalities out of 63,927 declared infections.

Johnson had previously resisted mounting public concern that hand-washing was not enough to reduce the impact of COVID-19.

As the numbers of cases and deaths climbed, employees were laid off, and sporting and other events cancelled, he moved to try to limit the social and economic fall-out.

The Bank of England slashed interest rates to record lows, while finance minister Rishi Sunak unveiled a series of multi-billion-pound packages to help those affected.

Notably, the government has stepped in to back up employee wages up to 80 percent, give tax holidays to businesses and boost welfare payments.

But Johnson was forced to go further, and put the government on what he said was a war footing, after dire warnings from scientists that its social distancing strategy was not working.

The government's chief scientific adviser has said it was a "reasonable" estimate that 55,000 people now have the virus in Britain.

'Turn the tide'

The prime minister has promised to "turn the tide" of the outbreak within 12 weeks, urging individuals displaying symptoms to stay at home for seven days.

Schools have been closed, as have pubs, bars, nightclubs, theatres, cafes, and leisure centres, and mass gatherings have been banned.

Foreign minister Dominic Raab on Monday told British travellers overseas to return home "while you still can".

Last week, the elderly and people with underlying serious health conditions were told to self-isolate for 12 weeks.

Meanwhile, continued stockpiling that has stripped supermarket shelves prompted a fresh warning about panic-buying.

Agence France-Presse

Don't stop the music: DJ hosts 10-hour Instagram dance party

Just because there's a pandemic going on, doesn't mean the party has to stop. And one DJ has kept it going – for 10 hours at a time.

The coronavirus has upended daily lives, with thousands of deaths around the world. Many people are staying at home in an effort to stem the rapid-fire spread.

Celebrity DJ D-Nice has begun hosting virtual dance parties on his Instagram Live channel in an effort to lift spirits as people self-isolate over coronavirus concerns.

Many of his A-list friends – including Rihanna, Common and John Legend – have made guest appearances thanks to Instagram Live's split feature, which lets two people appear in a split-screen.

On March 18, D-Nice posted on Instagram that he would be hosting "Home School", a "social distancing dance party".

He set up his turntables in his kitchen and invited his 950,000 followers to tune in and dance along.

What followed was a nine-hour long party that featured guest appearances from celebrities such as LL Cool J, Mary J Blige, Naomi Campbell and Lena Waithe.

"I can't believe that I started the Home School social distancing dance party just four days ago and it's become a place for us to virtually dance together and stay connected," D-Nice wrote in an Instagram post March 19.

"From my kitchen, I'm able to send positive vibrations to each of you."

D-Nice, who first entered the music scene in the 1980s as a member of the Bronx hip-hop group BDP, has begun hosting nightly dance parties in his kitchen, officially dubbed "Club Quarantine".

More than 100,000 people tuned in for his March 21 celebration, which lasted for 10 hours and had appearances from former first lady Michelle Obama, presidential hopefuls Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, and musician Diddy – who also sent the DJ a bottle of Ciroc vodka, in which Diddy owns a stake, during the set.

The party also included a shoutout to healthcare workers battling the coronavirus.

"Homeschool is a thing!" D-Nice said in a March 21 post. "This has been a great way to keep our spirits high."

Chasten Buttigieg, who is married to former presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg, agreed.

"Thanks for the dance party last night @djdnice," Chasten tweeted on the morning of March 22.

"Pajamas acceptable, nobody to judge my dance moves, all the snacks I preferred – honestly we should do this more often."

D-Nice seems only too happy to oblige: class resumes Sunday night. – AFP Relaxnews

WHO message to youth on virus: 'You are not invincible'

GENEVA, Switzerland - Coronavirus can sicken or kill young people, who must also avoid mingling and spreading it to older and more vulnerable people, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, told a virtual press conference: "Today I have a message for young people: You are not invincible, this virus could put you in hospital for weeks or even kill you. Even if you don't get sick the choices you make about where you go could be the difference between life and death for someone else."

Amid shortages of protective gear for health workers and diagnostic tests, "air bridges" will be needed to bring supplies to countries for vital health workers, the WHO's top emergency expert Dr. Mike Ryan said.

The WHO has distributed 1.5 million lab tests worldwide and it may need potentially 80 times that for the pandemic, he said. -- Reuters

California goes on virus lockdown as Italy death toll overtakes China

LOS ANGELES — California was placed under lockdown in the most drastic step yet by a US state to contain the fast-spreading coronavirus as Italy surpassed China as the country with the most deaths from the pandemic.

The United States, meanwhile, is fast-tracking antimalarial drugs for use as a virus treatment, President Donald Trump said, as he lashed out at China for not informing the world earlier about the original outbreak.


China, for its part, on Friday reported a second day with no new domestic cases since the virus appeared in the central city of Wuhan in December, before spreading worldwide.

While there was a glimmer of hope in China, several countries tightened their borders and imposed lockdowns, trapping tens of millions of people in their homes.

And the UN chief warned “millions” could die if the virus spreads unchecked around the globe.

Governments and central banks have unleashed a blockbuster series of measures to prop up the teetering global economy, only to see the once-in-a-century pandemic seemingly spiral further out of control.

The death toll soared in Europe as Italy announced another 427 fatalities on Thursday, taking its total to 3,405, according to a tally compiled by AFP from official sources.

China has officially reported 3,248 deaths from the virus, which can cause respiratory failure, particularly in the elderly.

Globally, the death toll from the virus has risen to almost 10,000 with more than 232,000 cases in 158 countries and territories, according to the AFP tally.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Thursday of the virus’s potentially devastating effects.

“If we let the virus spread like wildfire — especially in the most vulnerable regions of the world — it would kill millions of people,” Guterres said.


‘Paying a big price’

The number of infections and deaths in the rest of the world has surpassed those in China, which appears to have staunched the virus with strict measures including a complete quarantine of Wuhan since January.

Trump, who has come under fire for his response to the crisis, charged Thursday that the world was paying for China’s lack of transparency about the outbreak there.

“It could have been contained to that one area of China where it started. And certainly, the world is paying a big price for what they did,” he said.

Trump said US authorities were fast-tracking antimalarials chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine for use as a coronavirus treatment, making them available “almost immediately.”

The drugs are synthetic forms of quinine, which has been used to treat malaria for centuries.

As the toll surged in Italy, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said the national lockdown, which has been copied around Europe, would be prolonged to April 3.

France also mooted extending its two-week lockdown ordered this week by President Emmanuel Macron, as the interior minister blasted “idiots” who flout home confinement rules and put others at risk.

In Argentina, President Alberto Fernandez announced a “preventative and compulsory” lockdown from Friday to March 31, while Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro state will close its famed beaches as well as restaurants and bars for 15 days to try to contain the pandemic.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said the state’s lockdown – affecting more than 39 million people – would begin Thursday evening in a “recognition of our interdependence”.

In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the country could “turn the tide” on coronavirus within 12 weeks – but only if people heed advice to avoid social contact. 



The disease continued to hit high-profile figures with EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, Monaco’s Prince Albert II and at least a half-dozen NBA players in the United States among those testing positive.

Also falling victim to the pandemic was the G7 summit in June, which was meant to be hosted by Trump at the Camp David presidential retreat near Washington. The group of seven wealthy democracies will now meet via videoconference.

And as the Olympic flame arrived in Japan Friday to a muted reception, Tokyo Games organizers faced renewed calls for the event to be delayed.

“It should be postponed under the current situation where athletes are not well prepared,” Japan Olympic Committee member Kaori Yamaguchi told the Nikkei daily in an interview published the day the flame landed.

Emergency stimulus

With countries paralyzed by the pandemic and stock markets imploding, policymakers this week unleashed a wave of measures to shore up the global economy.

The European Central Bank announced a 750-billion-euro bond-buying scheme, dubbed the “big bazooka.”

In the United States, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin urged Congress to pass a $1-trillion emergency stimulus package.

Asian equities enjoyed some much-needed gains Friday after Wall Street finished higher following a volatile session as investors weighed the government stimulus measures against some of the first data pointing to a sharp US economic slowdown.

European stocks also staged a rebound on the stimulus news.

The battle is only just beginning across the rest of the world, with the shadow of the virus lengthening across Africa. 



The Nigerian megacity of Lagos announced it would shut its schools while Burkina Faso confirmed the first death in sub-Saharan Africa.

Russia reported its first death and even the Pacific nation of Fiji said it had its first case.

Countries are taking increasingly drastic steps to stem infections, with Australia and New Zealand banning non-residents from arriving.

The United States warned against international travel due to the pandemic and advised citizens to come home if possible.

Britain closed dozens of London Underground stations and shut down schools.

EU closed its borders to outsiders and in many countries bars, restaurants and most shops have closed their doors until further notice.

Spain, which is on a near-total lockdown, on Thursday ordered all hotels to close immediately.

Agence France-Presse

US begins first human trial of coronavirus vaccine

The first human trial to evaluate a candidate vaccine against the new coronavirus has begun in Seattle, U.S. health officials said Monday, raising hopes in the global fight against the disease.

But it may be another year to 18 months before it becomes available, once it has passed more trial phases to prove it works and is safe.


The vaccine is called mRNA-1273 and was developed by U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists and collaborators at biotechnology company Moderna, which is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

“The open-label trial will enroll 45 healthy adult volunteers ages 18 to 55 years over approximately 6 weeks,” the NIH said. “The first participant received the investigational vaccine today.”

Funding was also provided by the Oslo-based Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).

There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments against the coronavirus disease, known as COVID-19, which has infected more than 175,000 people across the world since it was first identified in central China in late December.

It has claimed 7,000 deaths, according to an AFP tally, most in China followed by Italy.

“Finding a safe and effective vaccine to prevent infection with SARS-CoV-2 is an urgent public health priority,” said Anthony Fauci, head of infectious diseases at the NIH, using the technical name for the virus that is believed to have originated in bats.

“This Phase 1 study, launched in record speed, is an important first step toward achieving that goal.”

The Seattle trial will study the impact of different doses delivered by intramuscular injection in the upper arm, with participants monitored for side-effects like soreness or fever.

Coronaviruses are spherical and have spikes protruding from their surface, giving them a crown-like appearance. The spike binds to human cells, allowing the virus to gain entry.


The Moderna candidate vaccine carries the genetic information of this spike in a substance called “messenger RNA.”

Injecting human tissue with the spike’s messenger RNA makes it grow inside the body, thereby eliciting an immune response without having actually infected a person with the full-blown virus.

Global race

Pharmaceuticals and research labs around the world are racing to develop both treatments and vaccines to the new coronavirus.

An antiviral treatment called remdesivir, made by U.S.-based Gilead Sciences, is already in the final stages of clinical trials in Asia and doctors in China have reported it has proven effective in fighting the disease.

But only randomized trials allow scientists to know for sure whether it really helps or whether patients would have recovered without it.

Another U.S. pharma called Inovio, which is creating a DNA-based vaccine, has said it will enter clinical trials next month.

Regeneron is trying to isolate coronavirus-fighting antibodies that can be administered intravenously to confer temporary immunity, and hopes to start human trials by summer.

According to the World Health Organization, 80% of COVID-19 cases are mild, 14% are severe and about 5% are critical, resulting in severe respiratory illness that causes the lungs to fill with fluid which in turn prevents oxygen from reaching organs.

Patients with mild cases recover in a week or two while severe cases can take six or more weeks.

Recent estimates suggest about 1% of all infected people die.

Agence France-Presse

Oppo continues to push envelope on smartphone technology

In an era of increasingly sophisticated smartphones, being good enough is simply not good enough.

This is why leading smartphone brand OPPO continues to churn out innovative technology that empowers the restless and relentless Filipinos, whose thirst for the best-among-the-best smartphone in the market is ever evident.

Revolutionary smartphone

OPPO’s latest revolutionary flagship smartphone, the Find X2 series was launched globally via livestream in early March, set to be a showcase of the brand’s best technologies yet, as well as a preview of other innovations the brand has in store for everyone.

The OPPO Find X2 Pro features the most advanced screen display OPPO has ever developed, with emphasis on resolution, screen refresh rate, color, and high dynamic range. The Find X2 Pro is the next generation flagship offering of OPPO that promises an all-round powerful camera experience, as well as battery life.

The device is equipped with Grade A screen quality through the 120Hz QHD+ AMOLED screen, an all-round ultra-vision-camera system, the industry’s fastest 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 flash charging technology, and the most advanced mobile platform—the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset. The Find X2 Pro continues OPPO’s line of smartphones with amazing camera. It is equipped with a triple-camera combination, 48MP wide-angle lens + 48MP ultra-wide-angle lens + 13MP telephoto lens, whilst supporting 10x hybrid zoom. It uses the Sony IMX689 which has the largest sensor size among all 48MP mobile camera sensors in the industry and Dolby Atmos equipped speakers.

“We are very excited to finally unveil our latest flagship phone Find X2 Pro in the Philippines. We believe that it perfectly matches the fast-paced and highly digital lifestyle of the modern Filipino industry leaders. Its revolutionary features were carefully crafted for years before we released them in public to ensure that we’re able to offer a full and satisfying smartphone experience that can keep up with the ever-demanding lifestyle of its target consumers,” shares Raymond Xia, Marketing Head of OPPO Philippines.

The Future of Intelligent Connectivity

Over the years, OPPO has boosted its multi-billion-dollar R&D facilities across key locations in the world. This ensures that the latest cutting edge technology is always at the hands—quite literally—of its customers around the world.

With nearly 100 million active users in the APAC region, OPPO remains committed to evolve into an R&D-centric technology company. In fact, in the next three years, the brand is set to invest over $7 billion in R&D initiatives, as it continues to focus on developing state-of-the-art technologies such as 5G, 6G, AI, AR, and big data.

“In line with the announcement made during the OPPO APAC Hub launch in Malaysia, we are already evolving beyond being a smartphone company. We have recently expanded our portfolio in the IoT space for a more comprehensive personal technology experience,” said Xia.

During the recent Find X2 series online launch, OPPO announced Find X2 series 5G smartphone globally as well as its latest product innovation on smart devices: the OPPO 5G CPE Omni and OPPO Watch. Adding to its portfolio beyond its smartphone product line, plus the other IoT products that were introduced during the OPPO APAC Hub launch in Malaysia such as the OPPO Enco Free, AR Glass, and VR.

Additionally, OPPO published a whitepaper on intelligent connectivity at the OPPO INNO DAY last December 2019, in partnership with market analytics firm IHS Markit. Titled “Intelligent Connectivity: Unleashing opportunities with the power of 5G, AI, and cloud,” the whitepaper aims to enable the industry to establish a more open and collaborative understanding of the ecosystem, better informing and guiding the sustainable development of intelligent connectivity in the future. The 5G era will be driven by intelligent connectivity powered by AI, cloud, edge computing, and IoT, according to the whitepaper.

OPPO also reiterates its commitment to being a global pioneer of 5G, especially because the coming 5G era is expected to generate 170 million potential shipment units for global smartphone markets. The possibilities of 5G is immense—almost instantaneous download speeds, higher resolution video, and next-level AR and VR capabilities.

business.inquirer.net

NBA, sports shutdown could go much longer

The already-delayed professional sports seasons in North America could be on hiatus for significantly longer than first planned after federal officials said Sunday that they recommend all in-person events involving 50 people or more be called off for the next eight weeks.

That’s twice as long as the 30-day shutdowns that the NBA, NHL and Major League Soccer decided to put into place last week in response to the global coronavirus pandemic that has already made a deep impact on the U.S. financial markets and has been blamed for at least 64 deaths in this country.

Major League Baseball also was going with what essentially was a 30-day shutdown after canceling the rest of spring training and pushing back the start of regular season play for two weeks; opening day was to have been March 26.

But new recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday night seem to suggest that sports in this country could for all intents and purposes be gone until May, if not later.

“CDC, in accordance with its guidance for large events and mass gatherings, recommends that for the next 8 weeks, organizers … cancel or postpone in-person events that consist of 50 people or more throughout the United States,” it said. “Events of any size should only be continued if they can be carried out with adherence to guidelines for protecting vulnerable populations, hand hygiene, and social distancing.”

The eight-week window easily exceeds what would have been the remainder of the NBA and NHL regular seasons, plus would cover about the first 25% of the MLB season — or roughly 40 games per team. It would also cast serious doubt on the ability to hold other major U.S. sporting events as planned, such as the Kentucky Derby in early May.

The NBA was already bracing to play games without fans in arenas, something that would have started late last week had a player — Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz — not tested positive for the virus, COVID-19. Utah teammate Donovan Mitchell and Detroit’s Christian Wood have tested positive since, but Gobert’s diagnosis was enough for the league to say that it was suspending play.

“I’ve been feeling a little better every single day,” Gobert said in a video posted Sunday. He added, “I wish I would have took this thing more seriously.”

Later Sunday, a person with knowledge of the matter said the NBA has sent teams a memo saying players can leave their home markets during the shutdown if they so choose — yet another clear sign that the game’s hiatus is not ending anytime soon. But if those players do leave for another market, they must do so after coordinating plans with their teams and medical advisers.

The memo also told teams formal practices will remain off indefinitely, individual workouts at team facilities may continue and detailed other safeguards teams should be taking at this point, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the memo had not been released publicly.

The NBA has already been asking teams to share availability for their arenas through the end of July, a sign that the league is prepared to extend the season at least that long if necessary — and those moves came a couple of days before the CDC made its latest recommendation. The NBA regular season was to have ended April 15 and the NBA Finals were to have started June 4, with the season done on or before June 21.


For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed and more than 58,000 have so far recovered.

It’s not just the team sports that have been shut down: Pro tennis and golf have basically been called off for the next several weeks, with such marquee events as Indian Wells and the Miami Open in tennis and The Players Championship and Masters in golf either canceled or postponed. The NCAA men’s Division I college basketball tournament — March Madness — was to release its bracket Sunday and start the now-canceled 68-team tournament Tuesday. The women’s Division I tournament was to have started this week.

They’ve all been called off, as have all other winter- and spring-sport seasons at all levels of the NCAA. Most high school state associations have also had to cancel seasons and championships as well. Some minor-league hockey leagues have canceled seasons, and it seems increasingly unlikely that the G League — the NBA’s minor league — will resume play this season. Even a polo match in South Florida on Sunday was played without fans or reporters present, with organizers saying they needed to take ultimate precautions.

Some NBA players were spending Sunday at home playing video games; Miami’s Goran Dragic posted a video of himself outside his house kicking a soccer ball around. Others, like Golden State’s Stephen Curry, were urging their fans to continue taking the pandemic seriously.

“We all have to take responsibility for ourselves and do whatever it takes to #stopthespread,” Curry told his 14.1 million followers on Twitter. “There’s a sense of urgency to flatten the curve and give ourselves and the healthcare system the best chance to get through this pandemic. Share this message and let’s protect each other!”

Associated Press

Amazon increases paid sick leave due to coronavirus

Amazon on Wednesday beefed up paid leave for workers quarantined due to the novel coronavirus or diagnosed with the COVID-19 illness.

The company also announced the creation of an Amazon Relief Fund — starting at $25 million — to serve as a pool of grant money for independent delivery drivers, seasonal employees and others losing paychecks due to the pandemic, according to the global internet retailer.


“Effective immediately, all Amazon employees diagnosed with COVID-19 or placed into quarantine will receive up to two weeks of pay,” the firm said in an online post.

“This additional pay while away from work is to ensure employees have the time they need to return to good health without the worry of lost pay.”

Amazon is already providing unlimited unpaid time off for all hourly employees through the end of this month.

The firm is based in Seattle, Washington, the state which has emerged as the United States epicenter of the virus with 24 deaths there so far.

Amazon partners and seasonal workers will be able to apply for relief fund grants to cover two-weeks’ pay “if diagnosed with COVID-19 or placed into quarantine by the government or Amazon,” according to the company.

“Additionally, this fund will support our employees and contractors around the world who face financial hardships from other qualifying events, such as a natural disaster, federally declared emergency, or unforeseen personal hardship.

Amazon has almost 800,000 full-time employees worldwide.

The company confirmed last week that one of its Seattle employees had been quarantined after testing positive for the new coronavirus.

Agence France-Presse

'Super-spreaders': COVID19 myth or reality?

PARIS, France — Can a single COVID-19 patient infect dozens of others? Although transmission rates in the current outbreak appear to be far lower, a variety of factors can lead to an individual infecting many.

The concept of so-called "super-spreaders" — patients who typically infect far more people than the standard transmission rates — emerged in previous outbreaks of diseases such as Sars and Mers.

Amesh Adalja, an expert in emerging infectious diseases at John Hopkins University, said the term was not scientific and there was no set quantity of transmissions that would define a super-spreader.

"But, in general, it is usually a markedly higher figure when compared to that of other individuals," he told AFP.

A range of variables govern how many people an individual infects, from how fast they shed the virus to how many people they come in to close contact with.

The novel coronavirus has a typical transmission rate of 2-3 — that is, every confirmed case appears to infect between 2 and 3 other people on average.

But the pandemic has thrown up at least two patients who appear to have been super-spreaders.

Suspected super-spreaders

One suspected super-spreader, a British national, appears to have infected a dozen others when he returned from Singapore and then went skiing in the Alps.

He recovered, but may have infected another five people after returning home.

In South Korea, which has the second highest number of COVID-19 cases outside of Italy, a woman known as Patient 31 appears to have infected dozens of others.

But in an ever better-connected world, it can be challenging to definitively link transmissions to an individual patient.

"It's possible that what we call super-spreaders exist, those patients who don't only infect 2-3 others but could infect dozens," said Eric Caumes, head of infectious and tropical diseases at Paris' Pitie-Salpetriere Hospital.

"The problem is we aren't spotting them."

According to Olivier Bouchaud, head of infectious diseases at that Avicenne hospital in Paris' suburbs, variable transmission rates could be down to how fast a patient sheds the virus once infected.

"That's just a hypothesis at this point," he said. "Obviously we don't have a clear explanation, and there's nothing specific to COVID-19."

Another unknown is the role played by young children, who are less severely affected by the virus but are capable of transmitting it — part of the reason many countries have moved to close schools in recent days.

'Highly variable'

Cristl Donnelly, professor of Applied Statistics at the University of Oxford, said all disease transmission was by nature "highly variable".

"But we are not all the same, we vary in our immune systems, in our behaviour, and in where we happen to be," she said. 

"All of these things can affect how many people we would transmit to."

Bharat Pankhania, an infectious diseases expert at Britain's Exeter University, even disputed whether super-spreaders existed.

He said that the biggest factors determining transmission were environmental, made worse in dense-populated cities.

"These circumstances often are: crowding; a confined space with poor ventilation; poor infection control, meaning lots of non-porous, hard surfaces which can keep a virus viable for a longer time; a favourable ambient humidity; and the infected person usually being in the early phase of their illness, when virus secretions are at their peak," he said.

It's due to these contributing factors that many experts are reluctant to talk in terms of super-spreaders.

Added to this, as France's health minister has pointed out, the term might be used to stigmatise individuals, when it is likely they transmitted COVID19 without realising.

Agence France-Presse

WHO declares novel coronavirus a pandemic

GENEVA, Switzerland —Three months following its discovery, the novel coronavirus spreading across the globe has reached pandemic level, a characterization the World Health Organization (WHO) finally made on Wednesday as infections rise past 100,000.

"WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva.

"We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic," he added.

The declaration came as global health officials reported around 114,000 cases of infections covering 114 countries. More than 90% of cases were recorded in four countries including China, where the virus started spreading, and South Korea where more than 200,000 individuals had tested positive for the virus causing coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19).

"We have never before seen a pandemic sparked by a coronavirus," the WHO chief said.

Global health experts are currently scrambling to develop a vaccine on the new pathogen of coronavirus, a family of viruses that causes respiratory infections typically characterized by cough and colds.

In COVID-19, WHO said recorded symptoms included fever, tiredness and dry cough, while some patients may experience nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. "These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually," WHO said in its Q&A on COVID-19 posted on its website.


What is a pandemic?

"Pandemic" itself is a loosely defined term, but can "can cause unreasonable fear" as Tedros recognized on his statement. That, and the backlash WHO suffered in the past for hastily making such declarations on diseases that appeared easily contained like H1N1 swine flu, prompted the multilateral agency to be more careful on assessing the spread of coronavirus.

A turning point for WHO was a supposed "inaction" on many jurisdictions to control the outbreak. "WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction," Tedros said.

Formally, what a pandemic designation does is to call for swift and stronger coordination among countries and stop the spread of infection. It also calls on governments to have proper and effective risk communication plan before, after and during the pandemic.

Agence France-Presse

Nearly 20 trapped after China hotel used for coronavirus quarantine collapses

BEIJING, China — Rescuers are searching for 19 people who remain trapped in rubble following the collapse of a hotel used as a coronavirus quarantine facility in eastern China on Saturday, state media reported.

A total of 48 people have been rescued out of the 67 initially trapped when the building first crumbled, state broadcaster CCTV said Sunday.

Footage circulating on Twitter-like Weibo showed rescue workers combing through the rubble of the 80-room Xinjia hotel in coastal Quanzhou city in the dark as they reassured a woman trapped under heavy debris and carried wounded victims into ambulances.


Other footage published by local media, purportedly from security cameras across the street, showed the entire hotel collapsing in seconds.

A total of 43 people have so far been rescued from the wreckage, state news agency Xinhua said.

The hotel's facade appeared to have crumbled into the ground, exposing the building's steel frame, and a crowd gathered as the evening wore on.

Officials have yet to confirm whether anyone died in the accident.

China's Ministry of Emergency Management said some 200 local and 800 Fujian Province firefighters had been deployed to the scene along with 11 search and rescue teams and seven rescue dogs, according to Xinhua.

Quanzhou authorities said ambulances, excavators and cranes had also been rushed to the site.

Representatives from Beijing are also en route to Quanzhou to assist in relief efforts, Xinhua reported.

Quanzhou has recorded 47 cases of the COVID-19 infection and the hotel, which opened two years ago, was repurposed to house people who had been in recent contact with confirmed patients, the People's Daily state newspaper reported.

China is no stranger to building collapses and deadly construction accidents that are typically blamed on the country's rapid growth leading to corner-cutting by builders and the widespread flouting of safety rules.

At least 20 people died in 2016 when a series of crudely-constructed multi-storey buildings packed with migrant workers collapsed in the eastern city of Wenzhou.

Another 10 were killed last year in Shanghai after the collapse of a commercial building during renovations.

Agence France-Presse

Vietnamese COVID-19 safety dance goes... viral

HANOI, Vietnam — Home-made videos featuring a catchy Vietnamese song and an accompanying dance about the necessity of hand-washing during the coronavirus crisis have racked up more than 2 million views on video app TikTok.

Cribbing the tune from pop song "Jealous"—or "Ghen" in Vietnamese—by singers Erik and Min, the Ministry of Health released an animated video with lyrics telling its citizens to "push back the virus Corona, Corona."

The unlikely earworm by a usually staid Communist government drew hundreds of thousands of views on Youtube, and was also featured on HBO's comedic news show "Last Week Tonight," with host John Oliver calling it a "genuine club-banger."

In Vietnam, the nation's youth have taken to TikTok performing hand-washing dance moves, making sure to rub in-between their fingers and their fingernails—which health professionals have recommended.

Spin-offs include office workers grooving at their desks and even people dressed in the Hmong ethnic minority outfits dancing in front of a waterfall.

"The remote village also prevents and fights the epidemic," read the caption on a video featuring the Hmong couple.

Popularized by dancer and internet personality Qang Dang, who has nearly 300,000 followers on TikTok and Instagram, he and another dancer performed it with light-hearted swagger on a street with food vendors.


It was tagged with the government-issued hashtag #ghencovychallenge, and Dang's original video has been viewed more than 1.1 million times.

The song provides guidance on how to prevent an infection, such as washing hands by "rub, rub, rubbing evenly" and limiting "visits to crowded places."

"We want the song to give fire and reduce tension for those... leading this fight, including experts, doctors, medical workers and millions of labourers who are on the frontline to fight this epidemic daily," the health ministry posted in the video's description.

"Vietnam is determined to win this epidemic!"

Communist-run Vietnam has a booming youth demographic, with two-thirds of its 97 million citizens under the age of 35.

It has 16 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, though it says all patients have recovered and been discharged.

The country, which shares a porous border with China, has taken great measures in the fight against the virus, including putting a small village an hour from Hanoi under quarantine after five confirmed cases emerged from there.

Agence France-Presse

South Korean sect leader apologizes over coronavirus spread

SEOUL, South Korea — The leader of a secretive South Korean sect linked to more than half the country's 4,000-plus coronavirus cases apologised Monday for the spread of the disease.

Shincheonji head Lee Man-hee's plea for forgiveness came after Seoul city authorities filed a murder complaint against him for failing to cooperate in containing the epidemic.


South Korea's case numbers -- the largest total anywhere outside China -- are expected to rise further as authorities carry out checks on more than 266,000 people associated with the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which is often condemned as a cult.

"I would like to offer my sincere apology to the people," said Lee, his voice breaking.

"Although it was not intentional, many people have been infected," the 88-year-old said, twice getting to his knees to bow before reporters in Gapyeong, his head to the floor.


"I seek the forgiveness of the people."

"I am very thankful to the government for its efforts," he added. "I also seek the forgiveness of the government."

Lee is revered by his followers as the "Promised Pastor" who has taken on the mantle of Jesus Christ and will take 144,000 people with him to heaven on the Day of Judgement, which he will usher in within his own lifetime.

A 61-year-old female member developed a fever on February 10 but attended at least four church services in Daegu -- the country's fourth-largest city with a population of 2.5 million and the centre of the outbreak -- before being diagnosed.

At services Shincheonji members sit close together on the floor and pray extensively in what critics say creates an ideal environment to spread viral infections.

Lee -- whose organisation says he has tested negative for the virus -- insisted that the group was "actively cooperating with the government".

"At churches, the leader of the church is like a parent and its members are the children," he said, pausing occasionally to wipe tears from his eyes as protesters shouted abuse.

"What parent would stand by and watch when there is such a scary disease that could even lead to death? Wouldn't they try to fix it?"

Seoul's city government has asked prosecutors to press charges including homicide against Lee and 11 other leaders after the sect was accused of submitting false lists of its members to authorities.

For its part, the sect says members face social stigma and discrimination if their beliefs become publicly known, dissuading some from responding to official inquiries.

Under South Korean law prosecutors can make their own decision on whether to act on complaints filed to them, and Yonhap news agency reported that the Seoul City request had been assigned for investigation.

Seoul mayor Park Won-soon added on his Facebook page: "If they had actively taken early measures, we could have prevented the explosive rise of COVID-19 cases in Daegu and North Gyeongbuk province and the deaths of several people."

South Korea reported 476 new coronavirus cases Monday, taking the total to 4,212, while the death toll rose to 22 with four more people dying, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Infection numbers have surged in the world's 12th-largest economy in recent days and the country's central bank has warned of a contraction in the first quarter, noting the epidemic will hit both consumption and exports.

Scores of events have been cancelled or postponed over the contagion.

The education ministry said that school and kindergarten breaks, which had already been extended nationwide to next Monday, will be lengthened by a further two weeks.

Agence France-Presse

Coronavirus time bomb: America's uninsured and brutal work culture

WASHINGTON, United States — Like many Americans, bartender Danjale Williams is worried about the growing threat of the novel coronavirus.

What makes the 22-year-old in Washington even more frightened: The thought of medical bills she just can't afford, as one of almost 27.5 million people in the United States who don't have health insurance.


"I definitely would second guess before going to the doctor, because the doctor's bill is crazy," she said. "If it did come down to that, I don't have enough savings to keep me healthy."

As the virus begins spreading in the west of the country, where the first death was reported Saturday, public health experts warned the US has several characteristics unique among wealthy nations that make it vulnerable.

These include a large and growing population without medical insurance, the 11 million or so undocumented migrants afraid to come into contact with authorities, and a culture of "powering through" when sick for fear of losing one's job.



"These are all things that can perpetuate the spread of a virus," said Brandon Brown, an epidemiologist at UC Riverside.

The number of Americans without health insurance began falling from a high of 46.7 million in 2010 following the passage of Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act), but has risen again over the past two years.

The current figure is about 8.5 percent of the population.



Getting through the door

Public health experts often worry about the destructive potential of a pandemic in poorer parts of the world like sub-Saharan Africa or South Asia.

These poverty-plagued regions have hospitals that are ill-equipped to stop the spread of infectious diseases, or to adequately care for patients needing breathing assistance, which the most severe cases of COVID-19 require.

By contrast, the US has some of the world's best hospitals and medical staff, but those not lucky enough to have good insurance through their employer, and not poor enough to qualify for state insurance, often opt out of the system entirely.

A routine doctor's visit can run into hundreds of dollars for those without coverage.

"I think that it's possible if this has the sustained spread, that might highlight some of those health care disparities that we already know about and are trying to work on, but haven't figured out a way to solve," said Brian Garibaldi, the medical director of Johns Hopkins Hospital's biocontainment unit.

That's not to say uninsured people have no recourse if they fall seriously ill.

US law requires that people who are truly sick get the care they need, regardless of ability to pay.

Presentee-ism

One of the key messages the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has put out about the coronavirus is to stay home if you have mild respiratory symptoms, except to go to the doctor once you have called in and if they think you need to.

"But a lot of people, depending on their jobs, their position and their privilege, are not able to do that," said Brown.

The US is alone among advanced countries in not offering any federally mandated paid sick leave.

Though private companies offer an average of eight days per year, only 30 percent of the lowest paid workers are  able to earn sick days, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

For many of these people, missing even a day's work can make a painful financial dent.

An October 2019 nationwide survey of 2,800 workers by the accounting firm Robert Half found that 57 percent sometimes go to work while sick and 33 percent always go when sick.

Vaccine cost fears

As the global death toll from the virus approaches 3,000 and the US braces for a wider outbreak, the race is on to develop vaccines and treatments.

Current timeline estimates for the leading vaccine candidate are 12-18 months, but will it be affordable for all? That question was put to Health Secretary Alex Azar in Congress last week.

His response: "We would want to ensure that we work to make it affordable, but we can't control that price because we need the private sector to invest."

Ed Silverman, a columnist for industry news site Pharmalot, panned the comment  as "outrageous."

"No one said profits are verboten," he wrote. "But should we let some Americans who may contract the coronavirus die because the price is out of reach?"

Agence France-Presse