(Bloomberg) -- A man who fell ill in
Mexico on Monday following a December trip to Wuhan, China, is under observation as a potential case of the coronavirus, the respiratory virus that has killed at least 17 people worldwide.The 57-year-old molecular biology professor works for the Instituto Politecnico Nacional university in the city of Reynosa, which borders with the U.S. The man returned to Mexico on Jan. 10 through a Mexico City airport and then flew to the state of Tamaulipas, Mexican authorities said.Tamaulipas State Health Minister Gloria Molina said in a radio interview that the man immediately reported his situation to authorities after feeling sick. He is now in his home under monitoring to prevent any potential spread.Molina said the man also had layovers at the border city of Tijuana when he left and returned to Mexico, according to journalist Joaquin Lopez Doriga’s news site.Link:
China Seeks to Contain Virus as Death Toll Jumps to 17Earlier on Wednesday, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said that a second possible case in Mexico had been ruled out.“The coronavirus is being looked into. If we have more information we will release it later today,” he said.Mexico City airport authorities said late Tuesday that they were expecting recommendations from international and local health authorities on how to deal with passengers showing potential symptoms.Separately, Colombian authorities are also evaluating whether a Chinese man with a respiratory illness, who traveled to Colombia from
Turkey, has the same virus, according to Blu, a Bogota-based radio station. The country’s health ministry declined to comment.The World Health Organization is expected to announce later Wednesday whether the outbreak counts as a global public health emergency, a declaration that can come with recommendations for restricting travel and trade to stop the spread of disease.(Adds comments from Mexican authorities throughout.)To contact the reporters on this story: Cyntia Barrera Diaz in Mexico City at cbarrerad@bloomberg.net;Lorena Rios in Mexico City at lriost@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ney Hayashi at ncruz4@bloomberg.net, Drew Armstrong, Matthew BristowFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.