HOUSTON — We are continuing to track the latest headlines and updates regarding the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The effects of the coronavirus pandemic could peak in Texas earlier than previously projected. Also, good news from the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
Get today's latest updates and top headlines below.
Today's top headlines
- Exxon Mobil reveals plan to cut spending
- Coronavirus peak in Texas could happen 2 weeks earlier than previously thought
- Gov. Abbott announces temporary closure of state parks, historic sites
- Texas Children's Hospital employees to receive special $500 stipend
- Family hopeful unproven drug hydroxychloroquine helps grandmother recover from COVID-19
- Texas temporarily stops evictions, but renters still getting notices
How you can get tested for COVID-19 | Map: Local COVID-19 cases | Coronavirus symptoms | Frequently Asked Questions
Latest updates
Here are the latest updates from around the Houston area and the world (all times are Central/Houston time):
APRIL 7 10:25 p.m. — Missouri City councilman Jeffrey Boney is home after a battle with COVID-19 in intensive care. Boney was released Sunday evening and posted a heartwarming video of his arrival back home. He said he's still recovering because he has a blood clot in his right lung that may six months to heal.
APRIL 7 9:45 p.m. — Folk singer and songwriter John Prine has died at the age of 73 from COVID-19 complications. The singer, famous for his lyrics and raspy voice, was one of the most influential artists in folk and country music. Prine twice fought cancer. Most recently, he was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2013 and had part of a lung removed. The surgeries affected his voice but Prine continued to make music and to tour. Read more about the famed musician here.
APRIL 7 9:38 p.m. — Rep. Gary Gates announced he's holding two drive-through distribution sites on Friday for families in need of essential items and KN95 masks for select individuals.
Gates, a Republican whose Texas House District 28 includes part of Fort Bend County, is providing care packets that include two surgical masks, two pairs of gloves, disinfectant spray and two rolls of toilet paper for families.
He's also providing the masks for first responders, at-risk individuals and people whose jobs include working on the front lines of the pandemic.
The distribution sites will be located at:
Fri, April 10, 11:00am-2:00pm
Cinco Ranch Branch Library
2620 Commercial Center Blvd, Katy, TX 77494
Fri, April 10, 3:00pm–5:00pm
Gallery Furniture
7227 W Grand Pkwy S, Richmond, TX 77407
APRIL 7 8:38 p.m. — Startling data in Louisiana show more than 70 percent of the nearly 600 deaths connected to coronavirus are African Americans.Similar statistics are popping up in major cities like Chicago and across the south. So, why is COVID-19 impacting black and other minority communities so much? Read more here.
APRIL 7 7:33 p.m. — Kroger is making sure it keeps local restaurants thriving during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Houston Division announced it's partnering with two minority-owned restaurants -- Burns BBQ and Kim Son -- to offer some of its most popular dishes at certain Houston-area Kroger stores. Read more here.
APRIL 7 6:25 p.m. — Harris County Public Health is reporting a COVID-19 outbreak at the LaPorte Healthcare Center.
An initial investigation into this facility began on April 4. To date, 34 residents and staff members have tested positive for COVID-19.
The facility is currently under strict health control orders that were issued to ensure appropriate infection control and prevention measures are taken. Read more here.
APRIL 7 5:37 p.m. — Hundreds of airlines employees have tested positive for COVID-19 in recent days and that number is expected to continue rising, according to information released by multiple unions.
Around 100 American Airlines flight attendants and at least 600 Southwest employees tested positive for COVID-19, their respective unions say.
Additionally, a second AA flight attendant has died of the novel coronavirus, sources say. He was a St. Louis-based flight attendant. Read more here.
APRIL 7 5:22 p.m. — Two Houston-area H-E-B employees have tested positive for COVID-19.
One employee works at the MacGregor location at 6055 South Freeway. The company said the employee was last in the store on March 20, 2020.
The other employee worked at the Cypress Market H-E-B at 24224 Northwest Freeway. This individual was last in the store on April 2, 2020. Read more here.
APRIL 7 5:19 p.m. — The Galveston County Health District reported four additional COVID-19 related deaths today in Galveston County:
- A female, age range 31-40, passed away April 6. She had a pre-existing medical condition.
- A male, age range 81-90, passed away April 6. He had pre-existing medical conditions.
- A female, age range 91-plus, passed away April 6. She had pre-existing medical conditions.
- A male, age range 61-70, passed away April 7. He had pre-existing medical conditions.
APRIL 7 3:38 p.m. — The Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center announced the death of a registered nurse who recently died due to complications from COVID-19.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice also announced the death of one of their employees that may be related to the coronavirus. Read more on the TDCJ employee here.
APRIL 7 3:16 p.m. — The City of Houston reported its 11th COVID-19 death.
The individual who died was a young man in his 30s with underlying medical conditions. He passed away on April 1.
The city also reported an additional 175 cases today, bringing the city's total to 1,320. Nearly 100 of those people have recovered. Click here to see a breakdown of cases in each Houston-area county.
APRIL 7 3:09 p.m. — Montgomery County reports its fourth death due to coronavirus.
The individual is a man in his 80s, who resided in The Woodlands, but died outside of the State of Texas.
The county also confirmed there are now 197 positive cases of COVID-19, up 36 cases from Monday. Thirty-three people have fully recovered.
APRIL 7 2:23 p.m. — Rise Houston Church is helping the homeless population by setting up handwashing stations across the city.
The city of Houston has already placed eight public handwashing stations in certain areas specifically for the COVID-19 season. The church said it will be placing 10 more hand washing stations in areas that supplement those locations. Each station will be checked on, restocked, and prayed for daily, the church said on its website.
APRIL 7 1 p.m. — New evidence shows that staying home and practicing aggressive social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic is saving lives.
In the two weeks since Harris County's "Stay Home, Work Safe" ordinance, experts estimate 4,533 lives have already been saved and 48,812 fewer people have had to be hospitalized due to the virus.
The data suggests if the Stay Home order remains in place through May 22, some 22,356 lives could be saved and nearly 214,000 people could avoid hospitalization. Read more details here.
APRIL 7 11:44 a.m. — A 13-year-old Girl Scout from Arlington, Texas collected 1,400 boxes of cookies to donate for busy nurses, doctors at Cook Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth.
Savannah Haynes said although we are going through a pandemic, she thinks a simple box of cookies can make a difference. Read more here.
APRIL 7 10:44 a.m. — Stocks climbed in early trading on Wall Street Tuesday as markets around the world piled on even more big gains following their huge rally a day earlier. As of this posting the Dow Jones Industrial average was up more than 600 points or about 3%. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 10:31 a.m. — New York City’s death toll from the coronavirus has eclipsed the number of those killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11 . Health officials say more than 3,200 people have been killed in the city thus far. That's about 450 more than were killed in the city in 2001 when hijacked planes slammed into the World Trade Center. In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson was in intensive care with the virus. And Japan declared a monthlong state of emergency for Tokyo and six other regions. But several countries in Europe _ including Italy and France _ reported positive trends. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 9:50 a.m. — News from the business world: Exxon Mobil reveals plan to cut spending, biggest impact in Permian.... Now, Exxon plans to spend about $23 billion on capital investments this year, down from the previously announced $33 billion. Read more here.
APRIL 7 9:38 a.m. — Good news out of Harris County this morning: "District 2 welcomes back its first confirmed COVID-19 patrolman, Deputy Troy Vaughn. You beat COVID-19 like a champ! Looking GOOD!" — Captain M. Koteras, Harris County Sheriff's Office
Yesterday, the sheriff tweeted another HCSO staffer was in critical condition from fighting the effects of the virus.
APRIL 7 8:55 a.m. — Texas Governor Greg Abbott announces temporary closure of state parks, historic sites amid COVID-19 outbreak... Historic sites and state parks will close to the public starting at 5 p.m. Tuesday and will reopen at the direction of the governor. Read more here.
APRIL 7 8:36 a.m. — Keep your distance: U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams echoed optimistic comments by President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, saying that if Americans keep practicing social distancing for the rest of April “we can start to slowly reopen in some places.” Speaking on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Adams says U.S. officials are watching to see how China and South Korea handle reopening their societies after putting mitigation efforts in place to deal with outbreaks of the coronavirus. Appearing on NBC’s “Today,” Adams applauded West Coast public health officials for enacting social distancing early in California and Washington state and providing a “blueprint for how we deal with this in the rest of the country.” Both Trump and Pence have spoken in recent days of seeing optimistic signs in the data. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 8:30 a.m. — Texas Children’s Hospital is honoring the dedication and commitment of their employees with a special stipend this week. Mark A. Wallace, president and CEO of the hospital, announced full-time employees would receive $500 and part-time employees would receive $250. Read more here.
APRIL 7 6:30 a.m. — Global shares are rising, fueled by hopes the peak of the coronavirus pandemic surge may come soon. Benchmarks in France, German and Britain advanced Tuesday. Wall Street futures are up again strongly, suggesting more gains on the open. In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 2.0% on news of a financial aid package to alleviate the blow to the economy from the outbreak. Shares in South Korea and China also rose. In a positive sign, China reported no new deaths from the coronarvirus. Encouraging signs also emerged from Europe and the U.S. on the illness. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 5:52 a.m. — World news: UK's Johnson spends night in ICU; not on ventilator - A British government minister says Prime Minister Boris Johnson has spent the night in the intensive care unit of a London hospital, but is not on a ventilator. Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove said Johnson is being given oxygen. Gove said Johnson is “receiving the very, very best care from the team at St Thomas’ and our hopes and prayers are with him and with his family.” Johnson was admitted to St. Thomas’ Hospital late Sunday, 10 days after he was diagnosed with COVID-19, the first major world leader to be confirmed to have the virus. He was moved to the ICU Monday after his condition deteriorated. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 4:41 a.m. — Kroger limiting number of customers starting today: Kroger says it will begin limiting how many customers can come into its stores starting Tuesday to promote social distancing. The stores will allow no more than half of the building's calculated capacity at any one time. Kroger said it will monitor the number of customers per square foot in its stores using technology it already has to provide a count of customers entering and exiting the store. Kroger also says it has started testing one-way aisles in some stores to reduce instances of customers passing one another. The company says its stores will close early for Easter this Sunday so its workers can rest and be with their families. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 4 a.m. — The United States has 368,196 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of midnight ET Tuesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been 10,986 deaths and 19,828 recoveries. An analysis by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation -- the one most often mentioned by U.S. health officials at White House briefings -- says the U.S. overall should hit its peak need of beds, ICU beds and invasive ventilators the middle of next week. It also suggests that the daily U.S. death toll will peak around then. But, the IHME says that's based on continued social distancing measures. Worldwide, there have been 1.35 million confirmed cases, nearly 75,000 deaths and more than 277,000 recoveries. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 4 a.m. — Denmark says it is planning to reopen next week kindergartners and primary schools for pupils aged up to 11 in a gradual lifting of the country’s coronavirus lockdown. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said late Monday that her government planned opening schools for younger students up until class five first because the requirement to care for them represented a greater burden on society. Reopening is planned for April 15. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 7 2 a.m. — MLB may open season in Arizona: People familiar with the discussion tell The Associated Press that putting all 30 teams in the Phoenix area this season and playing in empty ballparks was among the ideas discussed by Major League Baseball and the players’ association. The sides held a telephone call to talk about paths forward for a season delayed by the new coronavirus pandemic. Ideas are still in the early stage. Arizona’s advantage is 10 spring training ballparks plus the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Chase Field all within about 50 miles. Scott Boras, baseball’s most prominent agent, said it might be the quickest method to start play. Read more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 9:33 p.m. — Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said two more deputies tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of positive cases at HCSO to 27.
APRIL 6 9:33 p.m. — The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is reporting four new cases including two correctional officers, a laundry superintendent and one inmate.
TDCJ said the employees have been quarantined, at least two are at home. Meanwhile, the inmate is hospitalized in good condition.
In total, 13 TDCJ employees, staff or contractors and three inmates have tested positive for COVID-19.
APRIL 6 9:33 p.m. — Halliburton announced Monday two new measures its taking in response to a struggling global gas and oil market impacted by the coronavirus.
The company confirmed it's laying off more employees at its Texas and Oklahoma campuses. They're also reducing the salaries of Halliburton Executive Committee members. Read more here.
APRIL 6 8:36 p.m. — Lady Gaga and advocacy organization Global Citizen have raised $35 million to fight the coronavirus and will launch a TV special featuring Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and Billie Eilish to combat the growing virus. Read more here.
APRIL 6 7:25 p.m. — Aldine ISD will begin distributing Chromebooks and other electronics to students starting next week, with a special focus on students in grades sixth through 12th.
These devices are limited to one per family and must be requested in advance. Click here for more information.
APRIL 6 5:48 p.m. — Galveston County reported 16 new cases, bringing the county's total to 256.
APRIL 6 5:48 p.m. — Wharton County announced three new positive cases on Monday.
One new case is a female between 35-45 years old that resides inside of the city of Wharton. Another new case is a female in her mid-50s that resides inside the City of El Campo. The details of the transmission of these cases are unknown to us at this time. The third case is a male from El Campo that is related to a previous positive case. This brings the total positive COVID-19 patients in Wharton County to 16.
Chambers County announced six new cases on Monday, bringing the total number of positive cases in the county to 17.
APRIL 6 5:36 p.m. — Amazon announced Monday that it has hired more than 80,000 employees, including 4,600 new employees in Texas, in response to the coronavirus emergency. Read more here.
APRIL 6 5:25 p.m. — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said around 30 coronavirus patients from a Texas City nursing home are currently being treated with hydroxychloroquine, a drug often touted by President Donald Trump. Read more here.
APRIL 6 5:22 p.m. — Harris County Sheriff's Office reports 23 employees, mostly officers at the local jail, have now tested positive for coronavirus. Read more here.
APRIL 6 5:20 p.m. — Fort Bend County public health officials confirmed 38 new coronavirus cases Monday, bringing the total number of cases in the area to 318. So far, 416 people have been tested and 15 individuals have recovered.
APRIL 6 4:20 p.m. — A Houston Division Court Security Officers, Officer Brian Magee, died with symptoms that appear consistent with COVID-19. Test results have not been received.
APRIL 6 3:20 p.m. — The Houston Health Department reported 402 positive cases today, bringing the city's total to 1,145. A large amount of cases reported today is a result of backlog dating back to mid-March that is just now being reported, according to Mayor Turner.
No deaths were reported today, leaving the death toll in the city of Houston to 10.
HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT NUMBERS (as of April 6)
- 19 firefighters tested positive
- 220 in quarantine (30 quarantined in a city-provided facility)
- One in hospital (expected to make full recovery)
- Five have reported back to work
HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT NUMBERS (as of April 6)
- 125 HPD employees quarantined (105 officers, 24 non-officers)
- 123 HPD employees tested (109 officers)
- 24 officers tested positive
- One officer hospitalized
- Four officers returned back to work
APRIL 6 3:06 p.m. — Gov. Abbott said the direct deposits (economic stimulus checks) to eligible Texans should begin within the next week. To see how much you could be eligible to receive, click here.
APRIL 6 2:30 p.m. — During a press conference, Gov. Abbott reported new coronavirus numbers in Texas:
- 85,357 Texans tested
- 7,319 have tested positive in Texas
- 140 deaths
- 21,033 beds available statewide
- 6,080 ventilators available
- 7,550 anesthesia machines available
- More than 1.6 million masks
- Over 2.7 million gloves distributed
APRIL 6 1:29 p.m. — Liberty County reports its sixth case of coronavirus. Click here to see a breakdown of coronavirus cases in each Houston-area county.
APRIL 6 1:04 p.m. — Sheriff Ed Gonzalez tweeted a HCSO deputy with COVID-19 is now in critical condition.
APRIL 6 12:49 p.m. — The Houston SPCA practiced removing pets from a home in the case a pet owner has to be hospitalized due to coronavirus and the animals have nowhere else to go.
As a drill, the team used personal protection equipment (PPE) to safely remove the pets from a home, confined the pets during transport to SPCA's campus and washed the pets in a secure area of the Animal Medical Center.
Dr. Dev, chief veterinarian, strongly urges pet owners to make plans now for a family or friend to care for their pet, just in case a pet owner contracts COVID-19 and has to be hospitalized or self-quarantined.
APRIL 6 11:45 a.m. — Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo confirms the county, with monetary assistance from the federal government, is building a medical shelter at NRG Center as the cleanup continues from the shortened rodeo season. The medical shelter will only be used as a "last resort," said Judge Hidalgo at a press conference today. Read more here.
APRIL 6 11:21 a.m. — Update from the City of Galveston just now: "A person in the Galveston Police Department has tested positive for COVID-19. Out of an abundance of caution, we are testing employees who have recently worked with or shared workspace with the individual. The testing of these individuals will not affect the department’s ability to be fully operational and serve our citizens. The Police Department is taking precautionary measures above and beyond the CDC guidelines to protect the safety of our first responders and the public. In addition, the department continues to make every effort to protect the health and safety of its personnel and their families." | Map: Local COVID-19 cases
APRIL 6 10:46 a.m. — National update from the Associated Press: A federal report finds 3 out of 4 U.S. hospitals surveyed are already treating patients with confirmed or suspected COVID-19. Monday's Health and Human Services inspector general's office report finds hospitals expect to be overwhelmed as coronavirus cases rocket toward their anticipated peak by mid-April. Investigators say individual problems such as lagging testing, supply shortages and burned-out staff are feeding off each other, creating a vicious cycle. The federal watchdog agency is worried that could create a “domino effect” that overwhelms some hospitals, as happened in Europe. A group representing for-profit hospitals says facilities also are finding COVID-19 patients take longer to recover than patients with comparable illnesses like pneumonia and flu. Get more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 10:33 a.m. — World news: Johns Hopkins University reports there are 1.29 million cases worldwide. More than 270,000 have recovered. View the map/numbers.
APRIL 6 10:02 a.m. — Sad news from the Houston Ballet this morning: "Houston Ballet announces its cancellation of the rest of its 2019-2020 season due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Community performances at Miller Outdoor Theater and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion are also canceled. Read more here.
APRIL 6 9:55 a.m. — 'It all started with coughing' | Young Texas couple with coronavirus has a message for everyone... He still doesn't know how he got it, he assumes at the store or gas station but what he does know is that he likely gave it to his partner. Watch/read the full story here.
APRIL 6 9:53 a.m. — The Dow Jones Industrial Average is currently up by nearly 1,000 points. Stocks jumped in markets around the world Monday after some of the hardest-hit areas offered sparks of hope that the worst of the coronavirus outbreak may be on the horizon. U.S. stocks climbed more than 3% in the first few minutes of trading, following similar gains in Europe and Asia. In another sign that investors are feeling more optimistic about the economy’s path, the yield on the 10-year Treasury was headed for its first gain in four days. Get more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 8:25 a.m. — What has change about wearing face masks? The CDC’s latest recommendation on masks is different than everything we heard before. Read more.
APRIL 6 8:20 a.m. — From CBS NEWS: Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned Sunday that the coming week is going to be "bad" as the death toll from the coronavirus pandemic continues to rise in the U.S., even as the number of new cases is beginning to stabilize in certain areas.
"Even though you're getting really improvement in that the number of new cases are starting to flatten, the deaths will lag by one or two weeks or more, so we need to be prepared that even though it's clear that mitigation is working, we're still going to see that tail-off of deaths," Fauci said on "Face the Nation." "So the first thing we want to look for is to see on a daily basis are the number of new cases starting to stabilize?"
Fauci said that the number of new cases has begun to stabilize in Italy and said "hopefully" New York, currently the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S., will follow.
"We haven't yet reached that peak and when you do, you'll start to see a bit of a flattening and come down," he said. "Where we are right now is really approaching that apex, and that's why what [Governor Andrew Cuomo] and what we're saying is that this next week is going to look bad because we're still not yet at that apex."
Fauci said that the country could see a turnaround within seven to nine days. Read more here at CBS.
APRIL 6 8:13 a.m. — Houston-area essential workers can now apply for child care financial assistance thanks to a new program offered by the city, county and local groups. Get details here.
APRIL 6 7:52 a.m. — North Texas police are looking for girl who allegedly claimed to have the coronavirus, threatened to spread it. Read more here.
APRIL 6 6:55 a.m. — Business news: Wall Street is looking hopeful at the opening bell this morning due to improving coronavirus numbers from over the weekend. Currently the Dow is up nearly 800 points in the premarket. Get more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 6:50 a.m. — Talking money: What are your rights if your gym is closed? A gym member wonders why his health club made him pay for two weeks in March when they were closed, and now may charge him for April. Get the full report here.
APRIL 6 6:43 a.m. — National news: A Maryland grocery store employee in Largo has died after being diagnosed with coronavirus, company officials announced Sunday. The employee who died last worked at the Campus Way South store on March 16. According to Giant Food officials, the store was made aware that she was sick on March 28. See the full story here.
APRIL 6 6:32 a.m. — Improper disposal of personal protective equipment (like gloves and masks) is a growing issue, WGRZ reports. We've seen photos in the Houston area of grocery store parking lots littered with gloves. "How hard is it to put them in the trash?" Read more here.
APRIL 6 5:30 a.m. — Washington state returning 400 ventilators to go to harder-hit states: Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said the state will return more than 400 ventilators of the 500 it has received from the federal government so they can go to New York and other states hit harder by the coronavirus. The Democratic governor said Sunday that his statewide stay-at-home order and weeks of social distancing have led to slower rates of infections and deaths in Washington. Get more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 4:50 a.m. — Reminder: Houston ISD is relaunching its meal program after the distribution sites shut down last month after a volunteer was diagnosed with coronavirus. Starting this morning, each distribution site will hand out about 500 boxes per day. The school district says they have implemented increased safety measures. Get more info here.
APRIL 6 4:32 a.m. — Experts believe the United States 7 to 10 days away from the peak of COVID-19, the federal government warned Sunday. Health officials say now is the time to "double down" on staying home to help fight the spread.
APRIL 6 4:28 a.m. — Mayor: April is critical in Houston's fight against COVID-19..... Mayor Sylvester Turner started the week urging Houstonians to follow stay-at-home orders as cases continue to rise. Read more and watch the full story here.
APRIL 6 4:09 a.m. — The confirmed number of COVID-19 cases in the United States has reached 337,620 as of midnight ET Monday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University. That's more than double the cases of the next-closest country, Spain. There have been 9,643 deaths in the U.S. -- nearly 1/3 of which are in New York City -- and 17,530 people recovered. Worldwide, there are 1.27 million cases with nearly 70,000 deaths and more than 260,000 recovered. Get more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 1 a.m. — Governors plead for food stamp flexibility: Buying groceries online — which many Americans are doing to drastically reduce how often they leave their homes — is only open to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients in six U.S. states. Now, state governments and food security activists across the country are imploring the U.S. Department of Agriculture to make the program more flexible and easier to access at a time when so many people are losing their jobs and turning to the government for support. The calls have even come from conservative states where lawmakers have tried to reduce or limit food aid. Get more national/world updates here.
APRIL 6 12:10 a.m. — Wall Street could open in the black today. Asian shares and U.S. futures rebounded on Monday as investors grasped at threads of hope that the battle against the coronavirus pandemic may be making some progress in some hard-hit areas. Markets in Tokyo, Seoul and Sydney gained more than 2% in early trading and Hong Kong was up nearly 1%. New York futures were about 3% higher. Read more here.
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Coronavirus symptoms
The symptoms of coronavirus can be similar to the flu or a bad cold. Symptoms include a fever, cough and shortness of breath, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Some patients also have nausea, body aches, headaches and stomach issues. Losing your sense of taste and/or smell can also be an early warning sign.
Most healthy people will have mild symptoms. A study of more than 72,000 patients by the Centers for Disease Control in China showed 80 percent of the cases there were mild.
But infections can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death, according to the World Health Organization. Older people with underlying health conditions are most at risk for becoming seriously ill. However, U.S. experts are seeing a significant number of younger people being hospitalized, including some in ICU.
The CDC believes symptoms may appear anywhere from two to 14 days after being exposed.
Human coronaviruses are usually spread through...
- The air by coughing or sneezing
- Close personal contact, such as touching or shaking hands
- Touching an object or surface with the virus on it, then touching your mouth, nose or eyes before washing your hands.
Help stop the spread of coronavirus
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Eat and sleep separately from your family members
- Use different utensils and dishes
- Cover your cough or sneeze with your arm, not your hand.
- If you use a tissue, throw it in the trash.
- Follow social distancing
Lower your risk
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
- If you are 60 or over and have an underlying health condition such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes or respiratory illnesses like asthma or COPD, the World Health Organization advises you to try to avoid crowds or places where you might interact with people who are sick.
Get complete coverage of the coronavirus by texting 'FACTS' to 713-526-1111.