UK: Coronavirus 'imminent threat' to public health

The U.K. on Monday declared coronavirus -- which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan last December -- “a serious and imminent threat to public health,” according to a statement by the government.

“The Secretary of State declares that the incidence or transmission of novel Coronavirus constitutes a serious and imminent threat to public health,” the statement said.

It added: “The measures outlined in these regulations are considered as an effective means of delaying or preventing further transmission of the virus.”

The U.K. government also designated Arrowe Park Hospital and Kents Hill Park as “isolation” facilities, and the city of Wuhan and its Hubei province as “infected areas”.

The death toll in China from the novel coronavirus outbreak has risen to 909, the country’s National Health Commission said Sunday.

Authorities said 40,171 confirmed cases have been reported, while in the last 24 hours, 97 people have died and more than 3,000 new cases have been detected.

The number of people under medical observation has risen to 187,518 while the number of those thought to be infected stands at 23,589.

The number of those detected with the virus outside China's mainland has reached 36 in Hong Kong and 10 in Macau. One person died in the Philippines.

The virus is said to have been transmitted to humans from animals, particularly bats.

Many countries have evacuated their citizens from the city of Wuhan and other affected areas of China, placing them in isolated medical care.

The virus has spread to more than 20 other countries, including the U.S., U.K., Singapore, France, Russia, Spain and India.

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak an international emergency.