Month: March 2020

Over 60,000 people have been confined to four towns in Spain's first mandatory lockdown as infections for the new coronavirus increase sharply, putting a strain on health services and pressure on the government for more action.      The situation in and around the Spanish…

U.S. President Donald Trump said he is declaring a national emergency, invoking the Stafford Act to allow more federal aid to stream to states and cities to combat the coronavirus pandemic.   "We will overcome the threat of the virus,” the president said Friday afternoon…

Nepal's government announced Friday that it was suspending climbing permits for Mount Everest and all of the other peaks in the country due to concern over the spread of the coronavirus.The decision effectively shuts down the world's tallest mountain since China already closed its side…

President Donald Trump will hold a press conference to address the spiraling coronavirus pandemic as he seeks to calm a panicked nation amid mixed messages and growing criticism of his administration's scattershot response. "I will be having a news conference today at 3:00 P.M., The…

 WATCH VIDEO:The coronavirus outbreak is dealing a severe blow to the airline industry, as governments impose travel restrictions and would-be passengers stay away from traveling by plane for fear of catching the virus. Some analysts say the impact on airlines may become as bad as…

South Africa's health minister on Friday announced that the nation has seen eight new cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the nation's total caseload to at least 24.That number does not include a case reported Thursday, when South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases erroneously said…

U.S. hospitals are preparing for the unknown as COVID-19 spreads in the U.S. They are taking the best practices from hospitals elsewhere and tweaking their own practices. VOA's health reporter Carol Pearson explains. ...

The coronavirus pandemic has prompted multiple religious faiths to change or cancel services as houses of worship try to help contain the disease. But some church leaders are also tackling another task: communicating a message that elevates both faith and science.      That goal…

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is quarantining himself at home after his wife exhibited flu-like symptoms.      Trudeau's office said Thursday that Sophie Gregoire Trudeau returned from a speaking engagement in Britain and had mild flu-like symptoms, including a low fever late, Wednesday night.…

With the World Health Organization classifying the global coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, U.S. President Donald Trump announced late Wednesday a series of emergency measures, including an unprecedented 30-day suspension of all flights from Europe.But Trump, who spoke from the Oval Office, stopped short of resorting…

Russia's space agency Roscosmos and the European Space Agency have decided to postpone the launch of a joint research mission to Mars until the fall of 2022 because of the situation around coronavirus in Europe, Roscosmos said on Thursday."...The parties had to recognize that the…

A Las Vegas wedding with an Elvis impersonator: Canceled. A 3,500-kilometer (2,200-mile) trans-America road trip, a voyage of a lifetime that took months to prepare: On ice, too.The new anti-virus travel ban announced by U.S. President Donald Trump threw Europeans’ best-laid plans — family reunions,…

Scientists are calling on UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) to declare a unique coral reef system off the Egyptian coast a Marine World Heritage Site.  So far, the location has resisted the effects of climate change bleaching coral reefs around the world.  But as VOA’s…

The U.S. immigration officer shifted uneasily on his feet, and self-consciously told a handful of travelers exiting the fast-track Global Entry gate: "Oh, wait I have to ask you something. Has anyone traveled from China or…?"He trailed off, seemingly scrambling to recall what else he…

The new coronavirus can live in the air for several hours and on some surfaces for as long as two to three days, tests by U.S. government and other scientists have found.Their work, published Wednesday, suggests that the virus can spread through the air as…

Which disease is the most contagious per person?  Here's a comparison, based on scientific data. ...

Iran's senior vice president and two other Cabinet members have contracted the new coronavirus, a semiofficial news agency reported Wednesday as the death toll in the Islamic Republic from the outbreak rose by 62 to 354.      The report by the Fars news agency,…

What is a virus and how does it spread? VOA explains the basics. ...

Turkey confirmed its first case of the coronavirus on Wednesday, becoming the last major economy to report an outbreak after taking what the World Health Organization (WHO) described as "vigilant, cautious" measures to delay the disease.Turkey's tourism sector, which accounts for about 13% of its…

One of the United States' top disease experts says Americans and Europeans should be prepared not to do the things they could do just a few months ago before the coronavirus outbreak."It doesn't matter if you’re in a state that has no cases or one…

Faced with the spread of COVID-19, the U.K. is advising its citizens to keep calm and carry on.      For some Britons, the stiff upper lip is starting to wobble. As Italy goes into lockdown and other European countries shut schools and ban large…

Coronavirus is most dangerous to the elderly and those with weakened immune systems. Since the first fatalities in the US originated from a nursing facility in the state of Washington, there is deep concern among health experts, patients and their families that eldercare facilities are…

As the coronavirus rattles global markets, some analysts are now warning of a possible global recession. The damage is already starting to show in some countries hit hardest by the outbreak.Lee Jae-hoon is standing in the Korean barbecue restaurant he owns in this normally busy…

Hindus threw colored powder and sprayed water in massive celebrations of the festival of Holi in India on Tuesday, but the enthusiasm was subdued compared to previous years because of fears of the new virus.      Brightly colored powder filled the air in most…