With 65 new deaths, coronavirus death toll rises to 490

BEIJING: The number of confirmed deaths from China's coronavirus outbreak rose to at least 490, after authorities in ground-zero Hubei province reported 65 new fatalities on Wednesday.

In its daily update, figures from the health commission in Hubei, which has been hit hardest by the virus, also showed a jump in confirmed infections with 3,156 new cases.

That puts the national total at more than 23,500, based on numbers previously issued by the central government.

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The epidemic, which has spiralled into a global health emergency, is believed to have emerged in December from a market that sold wild game in Hubei's capital Wuhan.

Cases have now been reported in more than 20 countries.

Highlighting the concern about infections spreading in other densely-populated Chinese metropolitan areas, authorities in three cities in eastern Zhejiang province — including one near Shanghai — placed restrictions on the number of people allowed to leave their homes.

On Tuesday, Hong Kong reported its first death from the disease, as the semi-autonomous city closed all but two land crossings with the Chinese mainland.

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