Wuhan Doctor Succumbs to Coronavirus While Treating Patients

Wuhan has been in a virtual lockdown since Thursday, and transport restrictions have been imposed on nearly all the Hubei province.

Video has emerged, showing the chaos inside Wuhan hospitals. Corridors have been crowded with patients slumped on the floor and screaming for help.    

Meanwhile, social media has been flooded with images of exhausted medical staff. Doctors and nurses are working around the clock without much rest or food. They are also burdened with uncomfortable contamination suits.

The outbreak comes at a time when citizens of Wuhan should be celebrating the lunar new year celebrations. However, with public gatherings banned and public transport suspended, there are few celebrations to be had.

In addition, Hubei is also experiencing a shortage of virus testing kits and face masks. 

Meanwhile, internationally, signs of the virus have also been detected in Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Nepal, Malaysia, France, the United States, and Australia.

On Saturday, officials in Australia revealed that the country had its first confirmed case of coronavirus. The victim was a Chinese national in his 50s who had been visiting Wuhan.

"Given the number of cases that have been found outside of China and the significant traffic from Wuhan city in the past to Australia, it was not unexpected that we would get some cases," said at a news conference Australia's Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy.

"This is the first confirmed case. There are other cases being tested each day, many of them are negative, but I wouldn't be surprised if we had further confirmed cases."