The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged Americans to prepare, saying that while the immediate risk there was low the global situation suggested a pandemic was likely. “It’s not a question of if. It’s a question of when and how many people will be infected,” the CDC’s principal deputy director, Anne Schuchat, said on Tuesday. The US has reported 57 cases of the virus.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, however, advised against referring to a pandemic. “We should not be too eager to declare a pandemic without a careful and clear-minded analysis of the facts,” Tedros said in remarks to Geneva-based diplomats
San Francisco declared a local emergency over the coronavirus on Tuesday, despite having no cases. “Although there are still zero confirmed cases in San Francisco residents, the global picture is changing rapidly, and we need to step-up preparedness,” Mayor London Breed said.