Wuhan Municipal Health Commission

With millions of Asians traveling on Jan. 21 for the Lunar New Year holiday, authorities in China confirmed that a new virus could be spread through human contact, reporting 15 medical staff had been infected and a fourth person had died.    

China on Jan. 20 reported 139 new cases of pneumonia over the weekend, caused by the outbreak of a new coronavirus strain that medical experts are still struggling to understand.

A second person has died from a new coronavirus that has caused an outbreak of pneumonia in central China, health authorities said.

A 69-year-old man surnamed Xiong fell ill with the respiratory condition on Dec. 31, according to a statement late on Jan. 16 from the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission. He died on Jan. 15.

A 61-year-old man has died from pneumonia in the central Chinese city of Wuhan after an outbreak of a yet to be identified virus while seven others are in critical condition, the Wuhan health authorities said on Jan. 11.