Story at a glance
- The first case in South America was confirmed in Brazil Wednesday.
- Brazilian officials said the patient is a man who recently returned to the country after traveling to Italy, the site of Europe’s largest number of cases.
- President Trump is expected to address his administration’s handling of the outbreak in the U.S.
Every continent except Antarctica has confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus as Brazil has reported its first case of infection Wednesday, marking the first in South America.
Brazil’s health minister said the country’s first case of the virus is a 61-year-old man who recently returned to the country after traveling to Italy.
The death toll from the coronavirus is more than 2,700 globally, with more than 80,000 cases in six out of seven continents. The majority of cases are in mainland China, where the virus is believed to have originated in the city of Wuhan.
Cases have been confirmed through other parts of Asia, as almost 1,300 cases have been reported in South Korea, including a U.S. service member who has been ordered to self-quarantine in their home off-base. In the Middle East, Iran has reported at least 139 cases, and the total official number of deaths in the country stands at 15, according to CNN.
Algeria confirmed its first case Tuesday, and one case was reported in Egypt.
Meanwhile, Europe’s largest outbreak is taking place in Italy, where more than 300 have been infected and at least 12 have died.
Australia has confirmed a total of 22 cases as of Saturday.
In North America, at least 59 Americans have tested positive, according to U.S. health officials. The majority of those cases were Americans repatriated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined in Japan. Several cases have also been reported in Canada.
President Trump is expected to hold a news conference this evening to address his administration’s response to the outbreak. Trump is facing pressure over his handling of the coronavirus from lawmakers and health officials, who warned Tuesday the U.S. should prepare for an outbreak of cases.
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