by Alyssa Mann and Biodun Iginla, BBC News Analysts, San Francisco
Live Reporting
- The BBC has been following Cheryl and Paul Molesky on their journey home from Japan to Syracuse, New York.They were passengers on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship when their holiday was interrupted by the coronavirus outbreak.Over the next month, they kept their friends and family updated through a video diary.
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- Now to another virus hotspot - Iran - where a second MP has reportedly died from Covid-19.Fatemeh Rahbar, 55, was a conservative who had recently been elected to parliament from the capital, Tehran, state news agency Irna said.Last month, Iran's deputy minister, Iraj Harirchi, and another MP both tested positive for the virus. The MP later died. A high-ranking adviser to the country's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has also died from the disease.Iran has reported 124 deaths and 4,747 infections, although the figures are believed to be underestimated. Schools have been closed across the country, and cultural and sporting events cancelled, as the government struggles to contain the outbreak.
As the virus spreads around the world, authorities have been taking action by postponing major sporting events which would otherwise bring tens of thousands of people together.Here is a brief look at how the virus is affecting the sporting world:- Scotland's women's Six Nations match with France which was scheduled for later on Saturday has been postponed after an unnamed home player contracted coronavirus
- In Denmark, Superliga side Brondby have quarantined 13 people at the club after former Denmark international Thomas Kahlenberg was diagnosed with coronavirus
- Football fixtures have been postponed in Switzerland, China, Japan, South Korea and Italy's Serie A
- French football is the latest to be hit, with runaway leaders Paris St-Germain's Ligue 1 game at Strasbourg being delayed over fears of spreading the virus
- Meanwhile, UEFA has already announced that two European football fixtures, involving sides from Italy and Spain, will be played behind closed doors next week. They are: Atalanta versus Valencia in the Champions League; and Inter Milan versus Getafe, in the Europa League
- Formula One’s Chinese Grand Prix, which was scheduled to take place in Shanghai on 19 April, has been postponed
- Basketball star LeBron James said he would not play if NBA chiefs decided games should be played behind closed door. The US league has reportedly told teams to look into strategies on how to play without fans
- The 2020 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China, has been postponed until next year.
- In the UK, ministers are set to meet with sports governing bodies and broadcasters on Monday to discuss the staging of events behind closed doors if the outbreak worsens
- And doubts have been raised over the future of this year's Olympics in Tokyo. Our sports editor Dan Roan has taken a look at the situation - read more here.
- In South Korea, two blocks of flats have been placed under quarantine after dozens of occupants were found to be infected with the coronavirus.The buildings are in the city of Daegu and those infected are linked to a religious sect at the centre of South Korea's outbreak, Yonhap news agency reported.Meanwhile, another 274 more infections have been confirmed nationwide, taking the total to just over 7,000. Most of the new cases are in Daegu.Health officials say 44 patients have died across the country and 36 are in critical condition.
- It's the second most populous nation in the world and its government said it was among the first nations to prepare for an outbreak.But how is India actually doing? Can it stave off a big outbreak?There are only a few dozen reported coronavirus cases at the moment but the BBC's Soutik Biswas says the real extent of the spread of the infection may be far from clear...
- The South by Southwest festival, better known as SXSW, has become the latest casualty of the outbreak in the US.The music, tech and film festival - one of the most famous in the US - had been due to take place in Austin, Texas, from 13-22 March. Amazon, Netflix and Apple had already pulled out.Austin Mayor Steve Adler declared "a local disaster" in response to the coronavirus and said he had "issued an order that effectively cancels South by Southwest for this year".
- Here's the latest from the UK today.The country has reported its second death from the virus.Milton Keynes University Hospital said the man, who had underlying health conditions, died shortly after testing positive for the virus. The hospital has isolated any patients or staff who were in contact with him.The UK's first death - a woman in her 70s - was confirmed on Thursday. A British man also died from the virus last month in Japan after being infected on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. The number of confirmed cases in the UK now stands at 164.
- About a month ago, a story came to light that moved people all over the world.Pictures of Lu Huejin crying as she tried to get her 26-year-old daughter out of locked-down Hubei province for leukaemia treatment in neighbouring Jiangxi went viral."She needs to have her treatment. But they won't let us through," Ms Lu told two reporters who found her on a bridge of the Yangtze river."All I want to do is save her life."The BBC has tracked down the family to find out what happened next.
- The Philippines - a country of more than 100 million people - has only reported six infections but the country has now had its first case of local transmission.This has raised fears that the disease could spread quickly through communities and prompted the health secretary to recommend that a state of public health emergency be declared.President Rodrigo Duterte reportedly approved this on Saturday. The government has warned that communities could be locked down if cases increase rapidly.Although the Philippines has had few confirmed cases, it's worth remembering that the first confirmed fatality outside China was there - involving a man who had travelled from Wuhan, where the virus first emerged.And like everywhere in Asia, people have been concerned about the virus for several weeks. In February, we reported on a mass wedding ceremony where face masks and temperature checks were a key part of proceedings.
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- Cases of the virus, which causes the respiratory disease Covid-19, have now been reported in more than 90 countries, the World Health Organization says.The Vatican, Serbia, Slovakia, Peru, Cameroon and Togo have all reported their first cases. Cameroon is the first central African country to register a case.Meanwhile, the Netherlands reported its first death on Friday.
- Italy has reported its biggest daily jump in coronavirus deaths - 49, taking the total to 197.More than 4,600 cases have been reported in total and the government has ordered the closure of all schools for 10 days as it battles to contain the outbreak. All professional sport, including Serie A football matches, will be played behind closed doors for a month.The country, which has one of the world's oldest populations, has now the most officially reported deaths from the virus outside China.
- In California, 21 cases of coronavirus have now been confirmed on the Grand Princess cruise ship that is being held off the coast near San Francisco.The cruise liner is a sister ship of the Diamond Princess, which was the scene of a major coronavirus outbreak while moored in Japan. US Vice President Mike Pence said the Grand Princess would be sent to a non-commercial dock over the weekend where all its 3,533 passengers and crew would be tested.
- Hello and welcome to our live stream of coronavirus-related updates from around the world. More cases - and deaths - are being reported as governments and health experts struggle to contain the outbreak. The World Health Organization says nearly 100,000 people globally have contracted the coronavirus since it emerged in Hubei province, China, late last year, and more than 3,000 have died - the majority of them in China.
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