The coronavirus, those dreaded words that have been the subject of not just British headlines, but global headlines is spreading and at a rate that many did not once anticipate.
The virus has been vastly expanding and spreading throughout the world, and reports had surfaced suggesting that UK was now in the light of exposure to the deadly virus.
Today, the UK Government has donated £20 million towards a vaccine to help fight the disease, in an attempt to speed up the process for which a vaccine can be produced.
As the death tolls rise, as the numbers of affected individuals climb global governments have now seen an urgent need to address the pressing issue, how can this deadly virus be fought?
The death toll as reported this morning had reached 361 in China, and total cases of affected persons had surged to 17,000.
But yet, it seems that the containment procedure is not being handled and global governments are now cooperating to address what the media are calling ‘a global coronavirus disaster’.
11 British people who had been in Wuhan are now being placed in quarantine for a two week period, to prevent any chance of the deadly disease spreading further in the UK.
Reports have surfaced already suggesting that the coronavirus had been sighted in York, and as a result over 240 calls to a dedicated coronavirus helpline in York had been reported.
The £20 million which has been pledged by the British Government will go to CEPI – the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations – a global body aiming to fast-track a vaccine within six to eight months according to the BBC.
CEPI chief executive Dr Richard Hatchett said such a tight timescale was “unprecedented”.
“This is an extremely ambitious timeline – indeed, it would be unprecedented in the field of vaccine development,” Dr Hatchett said.
“It is important to remember that even if we are successful – and there can be no guarantee – there will be further challenges to navigate before we can make vaccines more broadly available.”
The coronavirus has been declared as a global health emergency by the World Health Organization, and the cases of diagnosis are growing by the day.
Certainly, the coronavirus outbreak seems more potent than was once thought and global governments will have to cooperate to end the epidemic which has proved fatal.
