First US citizen confirmed dead from Coronavirus as China reports deadliest day in outbreak

A United States citizen has died from the new coronavirus in Wuhan, China, in what appeared to be the first death of an American from the outbreak, NYT reports.

Mainland China had its deadliest day in the coronavirus outbreak Friday, with authorities reporting 86 fatalities from the pneumonia-like illness that is paralyzing much of the country.

A total of 722 people had died from the virus and 34,546 were infected in mainland China by the end of Friday, China’s National Health Commission said.

The majority of new cases were recorded in Hubei province and its capital, Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak. Authorities finished construction on a new hospital in Wuhan last week, and another is due to open in the coming days to treat the growing number of patients.

Meanwhile Chinese car and auto-parts factories may stay closed longer than expected because of the coronavirus, increasing the chances that assembly lines in Asia, Europe and the United States could grind to a halt because of shortages of components.

CNN / NYT