Chinese Tourist Confirmed as Thailand’s 5th Coronavirus Case

Image: Associated Press

BANGKOK — A tourist from mainland China was admitted to a hospital where medical tests confirmed she was infected with a new strain of coronavirus, health officials said Friday.

The patient is described as a 33-year-old woman from Wuhan, where the virus is thought to have originated. Officials said she arrived in Thailand on Jan. 21, and the patient is currently seeking treatment at Rajavithi Hospital.

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The news came amid an influx of visitors from China to the kingdom during the Chinese New Year holidays, raising concerns of possible epidemic through contact in crowded places and public gatherings.

Thailand already has the largest number of coronavirus cases outside mainland China, having five known case of infections so far; four of them Chinese tourists and one Thai citizen who recently returned from China.

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The mysterious virus has killed 26 people and infected at least 830 since it broke out in Wuhan. The megacity of 11 million people, along with nine other cities, have been placed under travel lockdown by the Chinese authorities in a bid to stop the virus.