The death toll from China's coronavirus outbreak jumped as the Lunar New Year got off to a gloomy start on Saturday, with Hong Kong declaring a virus emergency.
Emer McCarthy reports.
Dozens killed, 1,300 infected as China tries to prevent pandemic
Dozens have now been killed in China as the country scrambles to prevent a coronavirus pandemic.
The number of confirmed cases in that country stands at more than 1,300.
A local Beijing newspaper reported that the city is to shut all inter-province shuttle buses from Sunday (January 26) in a bid to stop the virus from spreading during one of China's busiest travel periods, its lunar New Year holiday.
In Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, authorities are rushing to build a 1,000 bed hospital in six days to treat patients.
The region is grappling with hundreds of patients affected by the virus in treatment, some of which are critically ill.
And the virus is spreading across the world.
In Hong Kong, five confirmed cases led the city's leader Carrie Lam to confirm a state of emergency on Saturday (January 25) and said flights and high speed rail trips between the city and Wuhan will be halted.
Small numbers of cases have been confirmed in Australia, Malaysia, and France as well.
American, Russian, and French media are reporting plans for each country to evacuate their citizens from Wuhan.
The origins of the virus are still being determined, but is believed to have been traced to a seafood market in Wuhan, known to be involved with the illicit wildlife trade.