Information accurate as of Feb. 19

Usually, during the winter months, Americans hunker down against influenza, also known as the flu. However, in 2020 there was an even more concerning worldwide epidemic: novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).
More commonly known as the Wuhan Coronavirus, the disease has been a focal point for the global health community recently, infecting more than 40,000 Chinese citizens, with a death toll of over 900 according to Chinese authorities.
China has taken immediate action against the disease, quarantining multiple cities and millions of people, in an effort to mitigate the spread of the outbreak. China has also been in the works of constructing a thousand bed hospital facility for patients with the disease, as there have been reportedly a dearth of healthcare spaces for infected citizens.
The coronavirus has spread to many countries around the world, with almost every West Asian country seeing multiple confirmed cases of the virus, as well as a couple of cases in several European countries, and 12 cases in the United States itself.
Ohio has had several suspicions of the disease, most notably by two Miami University students who recently traveled to China. One of the students exemplified common symptoms of the Wuhan Coronavirus. With prompt tests, the students were shown to not have the disease, and were quarantined during the testing process.

During this time, Miami University additionally postponed two basketball games and handed out face masks in response to the potential threat, as they assumed the worst and took every precaution possible.
There hasn’t been a definitive source of the Wuhan Coronavirus or even knowledge of how contagious the disease is according to the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC).
The CDC released a statement to the American public that the Wuhan Coronavirus “probably originally emerged from an animal source but now seems to be spreading from person-to-person. It’s important to note that person-to-person spread can happen on a continuum. Some viruses are highly contagious (like measles), while other viruses are less so. At this time, it’s unclear how easily or sustainably this virus is spreading between people.”
The CDC has additionally reported that symptoms such as “mild to severe respiratory illness with fever, cough, and difficulty breathing,” have been common in confirmed patients. These are all symptoms associated with influenza, causing even more panic as the disease spreads around the world.
WHHS students have even started to take precautions against the Wuhan Coronavirus. Many students of the Model United Nations (MUN) Team, who traveled to Boston to attend the Harvard MUN Conference, chose to wear facemasks in public settings to avoid any potential contact with the disease.
Justin Chan, ‘22, was among the students who wore a facemask on the arriving and returning flights to the conference.
“While the threat is low, the threat is still there and it’s better to be safe than sorry. People from all over the world travel through the airports we went through, and who knows where they have been or who they have been in contact with,” Chan said.
SENIOR Alan Zhang was another student who decided to wear a facemask.
“Since we were going to a conference with many international students in attendance, I wanted to minimize any possible risk, even if it seemed silly. My fears seemed to be confirmed because, when we were there, a coronavirus case was reported in Boston,” Zhang said.
As there are many mysteries still left unsolved surrounding the Wuhan Coronavirus, from how contagious it is to a cure for the disease, the world has been scrambling to solve and prevent any further outbreak of the disease. At this point in time, the only thing people can do is be careful, hygienic and conscientious of their surroundings.