Thread by @AFP

#BREAKING China virus toll rises to 54 dead, more than 300 new cases, says government

#BREAKING Shanghai govt reports city's first death from China virus

#BREAKING Second major China city to halt long-distance buses to contain virus: govt

The death toll from a virus in China rises to 56 and the number of infected across the country nears 2,000, authorities say
.@AFP Photographer @hectorretamal sends images from Wuhan, the centre of the contagion

@hectorretamal #UPDATE China expands drastic travel restrictions to contain a viral contagion that President Xi Jinping says poses a "grave" threat, as the death toll reaches 56 and Shanghai reports its first fatality u.afp.com/34sk

@hectorretamal #BREAKING Hong Kong Disneyland says closing over China virus fears

@hectorretamal #BREAKING US says to evacuate its citizens from China virus epicentre

@hectorretamal #BREAKING China imposes partial lockdown in southern city, first outside virus epicentre: official

@hectorretamal The animal-borne SARS virus 17 years ago was supposed to be a wake-up call about consuming wildlife as food, but scientists say China's latest epidemic indicates the practice remains widespread u.afp.com/34sT

@hectorretamal #UPDATE China expands drastic travel restrictions to contain a viral contagion that has killed 56 and infected nearly 2,000, as US and France prepare to evacuate citizens from quarantined city at the outbreak's epicentre u.afp.com/34sk

@hectorretamal VIDEO; The normally bustling streets of Wuhan are deserted as new restrictions go into effect banning most cars from the streets of the metropolis of 11 million

@hectorretamal #BREAKING China's Shandong province to ban long-distance buses over virus fears: state media

@hectorretamal #BREAKING China bans all trade in wild animals until viral epidemic eases: govt

@hectorretamal #UPDATE China bans wild animal trade and locks down the hard-hit province of Hubei to contain a viral contagion, as US and France prepare to evacuate citizens from quarantined city at the outbreak epicentre u.afp.com/34sk

@hectorretamal VIDEO: Wuhan residents flock to buy supplies from local pharmacies as the Chinese city and surrounding areas are placed under quarantine to stop the spread of the #coronavirus outbreak

@hectorretamal VIDEO: The normally bustling streets of #Wuhan -- at the epicentre of the #coronavirus outbreak -- are deserted as new restrictions go into effect banning most cars from the streets of the metropolis of 11 million

@hectorretamal #BREAKING Two Chinese provinces, three cities order populations to wear masks over virus fears

@hectorretamal Wuhan residents have been told to stay indoors, avoid strangers and keep their cars off the road, but locals like Zhang Lin are defying the threat from #coronavirus to drive sick fellow citizens to hospital
u.afp.com/34eV

@hectorretamal Anxious foreigners in #Wuhan -- the locked-down city that spawned China's deadly viral epidemic -- say they are stranded at home, running out of food and desperate to leave, as governments scrambled to draw up evacuation plans u.afp.com/34eC

@hectorretamal A top Chinese health official said Sunday that a new deadly virus that has infected nearly 2,000 people and killed dozens in China is "not as powerful as SARS"
u.afp.com/34ey

@hectorretamal #BREAKING Wuhan mayor predicts 1,000 more infected with virus: CCTV

@hectorretamal VIDEO: With fears continuing to run high, a top Chinese health official stresses that the deadly #coronavirus that has infected nearly 2,000 people in the country is "not as powerful" as the deadly SARS virus outbreak in 2003

@hectorretamal #UPDATE "Do not believe in rumours. Do not spread rumours. If you feel unwell, go to the hospital!"
In Wuhan, loudspeakers break the eerie silence by offering tips slathered with bravado
u.afp.com/34no