First case of coronavirus in North Korea, British man on cruise ship in Japan tests positive for coronavirus
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A woman in North Korea has become the first person in the country to test positive for the coronavirus, a South Korean newspaper claimed on Friday.
The woman, who lives in the capital Pyongyang, displayed symptoms after returning from a trip to China, the conservative broadsheet the JoongAng Ilbo said, citing an anonymous source in North Korea.
The North’s state media has not confirmed any infections. In its most recent update, on 2 February, the state broadcaster said no infections had been confirmed.
The report did not give details of when the woman was diagnosed or her state of health.
North Korea has introduced several measures to guard against the disease – which has affected all of its neighbours – amid warnings that an epidemic could put an intolerable strain on its poor healthcare infrastructure.
It has suspended flights from China and Russia and closed train routes across its borders with those two countries. It has also imposed a ban on foreign tourism and suspended operations at a liaison office it runs with South Korea just north of the demilitarised zone, the heavily armed border dividing the Korean peninsula.
The country’s authorities have stepped up border inspections and health screenings of North Koreans returning from overseas business trips, according to the Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of the ruling Workers’ party.
Meanwhile, a British man on his honeymoon is among the 61 passengers to have tested positive for coronavirus on a cruise ship in Japan.
The man has not been identified but has been removed from the ship and taken to a nearby hospital, according to Japan’s health ministry.
The man’s wife will remain onboard the Diamond Princess cruise which is anchored off Yokohama port. There were 41 new cases on the quarantined cruise liner in the port of Yokohama south of Tokyo, bringing the total diagnosed on the ship to 61
The death toll stands at 636 inside China (up 73 on the previous day), one in Hong Kong and one in the Philippines. Infections inside China stand at 31,161 whilst global infections have passed 280 in 28 countries.
