China has identified a new strain of coronavirus – from the same family as Sars – as the cause of the Wuhan pneumonia outbreak that has affected 41 people.
In 2002 and 2003, Sars – severe acute respiratory syndrome – infected more than 8,000 people globally and killed more than 600 in mainland China and Hong Kong.
So far in Wuhan, one death has been reported and seven patients have been discharged from hospital after treatment. In Thailand on January 8, a 61-year-old Chinese tourist from Wuhan became the first reported case outside China.
The outbreak has been linked to Wuhan’s Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market and that has since been closed. Some patients, including the woman in Thailand, had not visited the market.
Authorities said that there was no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission, although limited transmission of that kind – such as between an infected person and a carer – could not be ruled out.
There have also been 71 suspected cases in Hong Kong, with emergency measures being put into effect. There have also been single cases in Singapore and South Korea. However, the Singapore case, and many of those in Hong Kong, were subsequently identified as other illnesses.
Here is a look at the nature of the outbreak and a timeline of events: