Coronavirus: Third death outside of mainland China confirmed

Joe Gamp
·Contributor, Yahoo News UK
Updated ·2-min read
A man wears a face mask as he walks on a sidewalk in Beijing on February 13, 2020. - The number of deaths and new cases from China's COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak spiked dramatically on February 13 after authorities changed the way they count infections in a move that will likely fuel speculation that the severity of the outbreak has been under-reported. (Photo by GREG BAKER / AFP) (Photo by GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images)
There has been 1,355 deaths from coronavirus in China - with the third outside of the country confirmed in Japan on Thursday (Getty)

A third person outside of mainland China has died after contracting coronavirus.

According to AFP, an 80-year-old woman in Japan died on Thursday, following two previous deaths in Hong Kong and the Philippines.

Speaking at a news conference, Japan health minister Katsunobu Kato said the victim, who is unnamed, was living in Kanagawa prefecture, which borders Tokyo.

The woman first developed symptoms on 22 January and was admitted to hospital on 1 February with suspected pneumonia.

Newly appointed Japanese Health, Labour and Welfare Minister Katsunobu Kato speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo on September 11, 2019. - Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on September 11 appointed new foreign and defence ministers and promoted a popular rising political star, in a cabinet reshuffle that fuelled speculation over the prime minister's successor. (Photo by Toshifumi KITAMURA / AFP) (Photo credit should read TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP via Getty Images)
Japanese health, labour and welfare minister Katsunobu Kato confirmed the country's first coronavirus death (Getty)

But her respiratory condition deteriorated on 6 February and she was transported to another hospital.

As her condition worsened, the woman, who had no record of overseas travel, was tested for coronavirus on Wednesday.

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Mr Kato said: “The relationship between the new coronavirus and the death of the person is still unclear.

BEIJING, CHINA - FEBRUARY 12: Chinese men wear protective masks as they walk on February 12, 2020 in Beijing, China. The number of cases of a deadly new coronavirus rose to more than 44000 in mainland China Wednesday, days after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a global public health emergency. China continued to lock down the city of Wuhan in an effort to contain the spread of the pneumonia-like disease which medicals experts have confirmed can be passed from human to human. In an unprecedented move, Chinese authorities have put travel restrictions on the city which is the epicentre of the virus and municipalities in other parts of the country affecting tens of millions of people. The number of those who have died from the virus in China climbed to over 1100 on Thursday, mostly in Hubei province, and cases have been reported in other countries including the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, India, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and several others. The World Health Organization has warned all governments to be on alert and screening has been stepped up at airports around the world. Some countries, including the United States, have put restrictions on Chinese travelers entering and advised their citizens against travel to China. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)
The number of those who have died from the virus in China has climbed to more than 1,300 (Getty)

“This is the first death of a person who has tested positive.

“She was suspected of being infected with the coronavirus so ... testing was conducted. Her positive test result was confirmed after her death.”

The news comes as the death toll in China rises to 1,355.

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About 242 deaths occurred in Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus, on Wednesday, while the number of infected across China has risen to nearly 60,000.

The Philippines confirmed the first death outside the Chinese mainland on 2 February, a 44-year-old Chinese national from Wuhan.

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Hong Kong reported the second death two days later, a 39-year-old man who had travelled to Hubei.

Passengers and children stand on the deck of the cruise ship Diamond Princess, as the vessel's passengers continue to be tested for coronavirus, at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, Japan February 13, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
Passengers and children stand on the deck of the cruise ship Diamond Princess, as the vessel's passengers continue to be tested for coronavirus (Reuters)

Meanwhile, cruise ship the Diamond Princess is quarantined in a Japanese port with scores of cases of coronavirus.

At least 65 people have tested positive for Covid-19 on board the ship, which is docked at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama.

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