The COVID-19 viral disease that has swept into at least 114 countries and killed more than 4,000 people is now officially a pandemic, the World Health Organization announced Wednesday. From a report: “This is the first pandemic caused by coronavirus,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Eight countries — including the U.S. — are now each reporting more than 1,000 cases of COVID-19, caused by the virus that has infected more than 120,000 people worldwide. A severe outbreak in Italy has now caused more than 630 deaths and the country’s case total continues to rise sharply. It’s now at 10,000 cases, second only to China. There are 9,000 cases in Iran, and more than 7,700 in South Korea. Those countries are all imposing drastic measures in an attempt to slow the virus, which has a higher fatality rate for elderly people and those with underlying health conditions.

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Source:: Slashdot