Chinese authorities have ordered the extension of a public holiday in an effort to contain an epidemic that has killed 56 people and infected nearly 2,000 worldwide, state-run media reported.

A working group chaired by Premier Li Keqiang to tackle the outbreak decided on Sunday "to reduce population flows" by extending the Spring Festival holiday which had been scheduled to end on January 30, state news agency Xinhua said.

It was not immediately clear how long the extension is.

The group also ordered changes to "the starting dates of schools" and "people to work from home by working online."

"The meeting stressed that the country is at a crucial time in the prevention and control of the novel coronavirus outbreak, urging Party committees and governments at all levels to take more 'decisive, powerful and orderly, scientific and well-planned' measures to effective curb the spread," Xinhua reported.

In a bid to slow the spread of the respiratory virus, the government had previously locked down hard-hit Hubei, a province in central China that is at the outbreak's epicentre, in an unprecedented operation affecting tens of millions of people.

The previously unknown virus has caused global concern because of its similarity to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) pathogen, which killed hundreds across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.

Originating in Hubei's capital of Wuhan, the virus has spread throughout China and across the world -- with cases confirmed in around a dozen countries including as far away as the United States.

Several countries were making arrangements to evacuate their citizens from Wuhan, where an eery calm pervades as new restrictions prohibit most road traffic in the metropolis of 11 million.

China death toll spikes to 80, over 2,700 cases confirmed
Wuhan, China (AFP) Jan 27, 2020 - China said on Monday that the death toll from a deadly viral outbreak spiked to 80 as the hard-hit epicentre province of Hubei suffered 24 new fatalities, while total confirmed cases nationwide rose sharply to 2,744.

While there were no new deaths confirmed outside of Hubei, the national tally of verified infections rose by 769, around half of them in Hubei, the National Health Commission said. It said 461 of those infected were in serious condition.

China has locked down Hubei in the country's centre, an unprecedented operation affecting tens of millions of people and intended to slow transmission of the respiratory virus.

The previously unknown contagion has caused global concern because of its similarity to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) pathogen, which killed hundreds across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.

Drastic travel restrictions have been imposed outside the epicentre, with Shandong province and four cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an and Tianjin -- announcing bans on long-distance buses entering or leaving.

The move will affect millions of people travelling over the Lunar New Year holiday, which authorities said would be extended while the government works to contain the virus.

The populous southern province of Guangdong, Jiangxi in central China, and three cities made it mandatory for residents to wear face masks in public.

Originating in Hubei's capital of Wuhan, the virus has spread throughout China and across the world -- with cases confirmed in around a dozen countries including as far away as the United States.

The global spread of the coronavirus: Where is it?
Beijing (AFP) Jan 26, 2020 - A virus similar to the SARS pathogen has claimed 56 lives since emerging in a market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, and spread around the world.

Here are the places that have confirmed cases of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus:

- China -

As of Sunday, almost 2,000 people have been infected across China, the bulk of them in and around Wuhan.

Nearly all of the 56 who have died were in the Wuhan region, but officials have confirmed at least four deaths elsewhere.

The city of Macau, a gambling hub hugely popular with mainland tourists, has confirmed five cases as of Sunday.

In Hong Kong, six people are known to have the disease. Of those, five arrived via a newly built high-speed train terminal which connects with the mainland.

- France -

There are three known cases of the coronavirus in France, the first European country to be affected by the outbreak.

One person is sick in Bordeaux and another is ill in Paris. A third person, who is a close relative of one of the other two, has also been confirmed to have the virus.

All three had recently travelled to China and have now been placed in isolation.

- Japan -

Japan's health authorities confirmed the country's fourth case on Saturday: a man in his 40s, visiting Japan from Wuhan, who is currently in hospital in a stable condition.

Another man was hospitalised on January 10, four days after his return from a visit to Wuhan.

And a further two people from the Chinese city -- a man in his 40s and a woman in her 30s -- have also been treated in hospital for fever.

- Australia -

Australia confirmed its first four cases of the virus on Saturday.

One man in Melbourne and three men in Sydney tested positive and are being treated in hospital isolation units after arriving in the country from Wuhan.

- United States -

The US has confirmed five cases of the virus in patients who had recently entered the country from Wuhan.

A man aged in his 30s reported himself to authorities on January 19 after returning to his home near Seattle.

On Friday, public health authorities said the virus had been detected in a Chicago woman in her 60s, and on Saturday a traveller from Wuhan in California was confirmed as the third infected person on US soil.

A second case was confirmed in California on Sunday, along with one in Arizona.

- Canada -

Canada said Saturday it had identified its first "presumptive" case of the virus in a man who returned to Toronto from Wuhan.

The patient is aged in his 50s and has been placed in isolation.

- Malaysia -

Malaysia confirmed its fourth case on Sunday. All are Chinese nationals on holiday from Wuhan who arrived in the country from Singapore.

A 66-year-old woman and two boys, aged two and 11, are in stable condition, Malaysia's health minister said Saturday.

The latest confirmed case is a 40-year-old man who entered the country on a bus with a Chinese tour group.

- Nepal -

Nepal said a 32-year-old man arriving from Wuhan had the disease.

The patient, who was initially quarantined, recovered and was discharged.

- Singapore -

Singapore announced its fourth case of the coronavirus on Sunday. All four patients had arrived in the city-state from Wuhan over the last week.

- South Korea -

South Korean media reported the country's third case on Sunday.

The patients include two South Korean men, both aged in their 50s and working in Wuhan, who returned to South Korea earlier this week.

The country reported its first case on January 20 -- a 35-year-old woman who flew in from Wuhan.

- Taiwan -

Taiwan has uncovered four cases so far -- the latest a woman in her fifties who was in Wuhan for a sight-seeing tour and returned home voluntarily on January 25.

- Thailand -

Thailand has detected eight cases so far -- three of whom are receiving treatment in hospital and five of whom have been discharged, according to a statement from Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.

All the infected persons are Chinese nationals, except for a 73-year-old Thai woman who came back from Wuhan this month.

- Vietnam -

Vietnam confirmed two cases of the virus on Thursday. An infected man from Wuhan travelled to Ho Chi Minh City earlier this month and passed the virus on to his son.

Related Links
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China locks down city at centre of virus outbreak
Wuhan, China (AFP) Jan 23, 2020
China banned trains and planes from leaving a major city at the centre of a virus outbreak on Thursday, seeking to seal off its 11 million people to contain the contagious disease that has claimed 17 lives, infected hundreds and spread to other countries. Authorities in Wuhan, a major transport hub, also suspended public buses and subways, and said residents should not leave "without a special reason". More than 570 people have been infected with the virus across China - with most cases found i ... read more