Coronavirus illness given official name Covid-19 as hopes rise that cases could peak soon
- One hundred deaths are reported in a single day for the first time, but statistics show number of new cases decreasing
- First senior heads roll as Beijing tries to contain public anger over outbreak of respiratory disease
The World Health Organisation on Tuesday gave an official name – Covid-19 – to the disease caused by the coronavirus that has ravaged China and spread across the globe, as statistics suggested that infections could level off in the coming weeks and Beijing vowed to hold local cadres to account for failing to contain the outbreak.
China’s National Health Commission said on Tuesday that the country had reported 108 new deaths from the virus – the first time that 100 or more fatalities were recorded in a single day.
The outbreak, which was generally believed to have originated from Wuhan in central China, has killed 1,018 people worldwide – including one death in Hong Kong and another in the Philippines.
But Zhong Nanshan, one of China’s top respiratory disease experts, predicted that the outbreak could peak this month, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
“We can now see a trend that the number of new cases is gradually reducing,” said Zhong. “Through mathematical modelling, [we can say that] new infections will peak in mid or end of February in southern China.”
Zhong added, however, that “it is not possible to predict when exactly the plateau will happen, and that would largely depend on how effective our prevention and control measures are as more people make the journey to return to work” after the Lunar New Year holiday.