The coronavirus is rapidly infecting thousands more in China.
China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency confirmed that nearly 15,000 more people have been infected with the coronavirus in the country, killing an additional 242. The total number of confirmed infections has risen to 28,000, with approximately 1,300 deaths.
The spike indicates that the communist state has miscounted those affected by the disease, as some experts have suspected. Videos have also circulated online of state officials in hazmat suits and cement trucks spraying chemical disinfectants in the streets and detaining those who do not wear masks.
At the beginning of February, the disease, which popped up in January in the city of Wuhan, China, killed over 400 people and infected more than 20,000 people in the country. Cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed in other countries, including the United States.
China’s economic growth has also been affected by the spread of the disease, falling from 2.1% to 1.2% gross domestic product development as the nation plans to pour $22 billion into fighting the disease.
