The first fatality in the US due to the coronavirus was confirmed Saturday by the Washington State Department of Health. "The first US death from COVID-19 has occurred here in the state of Washington," the department said in a tweet, referring to the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus.

Robert Rodriguez/CNET © Provided by CNET Robert Rodriguez/CNET

The patient died at a hospital in Kirkland, Washington, near Seattle, and was a man in his 50s with an underlying health condition, state health officials said during a briefing Saturday afternoon. 

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said Saturday that the state is working to keep its citizens safe, and he declared a state of emergency.

"In partnership with the Washington State Department of Health, the Washington State Department of Emergency Management and local and community health partners, we are strengthening our preparedness and response efforts," Inslee said in a statement. "I am committed to keeping Washingtonians healthy, safe and informed." Officials said Saturday that the CDC would send a team to Washington state to assist in an investigation of the virus there.

a red and white umbrella © Robert Rodriguez/CNET

Discovered in December in China, the coronavirus has spread globally, so far killing more than 2,900 people and infecting about 86,000, with around 70 cases in the US as of Saturday. Washington state was also the site of the first case in the US, a traveler who'd returned from China. The person has since recovered and been released, The New York Times noted.

State health officials said Saturday that there wasn't any evidence that the patient who died in Washington had recently traveled or been in contact with anyone known to be infected. On Friday, similarly unexplained cases of coronavirus infections appeared in Northern California and Oregon, with specialists saying they could point to a spread of the virus in the US, the Times said. 

At a White House press conference Saturday, President Donald Trump had mistakenly identified the Washington state fatality as a woman, but the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention later issued a statement saying it had incorrectly described the patient's gender in a briefing with Trump.

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Kirkland, Washington, site of Saturday's death, is also adjacent to Redmond, where Microsoft is headquartered. It's unclear how the news might affect the company. A spokesperson said Microsoft is keeping its eye on the situation. 

"The health and safety of our employees is our top priority at Microsoft," the spokesperson said in a statement. "We are providing real-time guidance to employees in all affected regions. We will continue to monitor the situation and take action as necessary to help protect employees."

So far, the coronavirus has impacted tech companies in various ways. Major tech shows such as Mobile World Congress, the Geneva Motor Show and Facebook's F8 have been canceled, travel plans have been disrupted, component supplies have been threatened, and both Microsoft and Apple have issued financial warnings related to the outbreak.

On Friday, Google said an employee in its Zurich office had been diagnosed with coronavirus, though the office itself remains open. Apple has temporarily closed its corporate offices and contact centers in China.

During Saturday's press briefing, the Washington state health officials emphasized that 80% of coronavirus cases are mild and that people most at risk are individuals at least 60 years old who have underlying health conditions. But because some cases can be severe, the officials encouraged people to, among other things, wash their hands frequently; avoid touching their eyes, ears, nose and face; stay home from work or school if sick; have a plan for looking after any family members who might become ill; and cut down on social contact.

They also pointed to the CDC's coronavirus prevention page. (The World Health Organization has a COVID-19 prevention page too.) The officials added that businesses should start thinking about how their employees can have less contact with one another, in case such a step becomes necessary, and they mentioned options such as telecommuting and videoconferencing.

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Coronavirus in pictures: Scenes from around the world

  • a person wearing a hat: A never-before-seen deadly virus first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan has infected people in China and around the world with a pneumonia-like illness. The disease has caused alarm worldwide, from Australia to Italy, Iran to Japan, Singapore to the US.Here are some scenes from around the globe as scientists and citizens struggle to understand and contain the illness. Zhou Qiong, a doctor in the department of respiratory medicine at Union Hospital in Wuhan, China, is a member of an "assault team" formed to fight the coronavirus. The hospital is affiliated with Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.Keep updated on the fast-moving developments here. Originally published Jan. 25 and updated as new developments occur.
  • a car parked in front of a bus: In Ankara, Turkey, on Feb. 25, an ambulance transports passengers and crew of a Turkish Airlines plane from Tehran to a local hospital for a 14-day quarantine and to be tested for possible coronavirus infection.Two weeks earlier, on Feb. 11, the World Health Organization officially named the virus SARS-CoV-2, and the resulting illness COVID-19.
  • a large white building: A pre-triage medical tent stands ready in front of Santa Maria Nuova Hospital in Florence on Feb. 25 as Tuscany reported its first two cases of COVID-19.Also on Feb. 25, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned that coronavirus cases in the US are likely to spread, though the immediate threat to the general public is still low.
  • a man reading a book: Epidemiologist Dr. Bruce Aylward, of the World Health Organization, shows graphics documenting the coronavirus outbreak at a press conference in Geneva on Feb. 25.A day earlier, WHO noted that China had, as of that morning, reported more than 77,000 cases of COVID-19, including more than 2,600 deaths. It also said that the epidemic peaked and plateaued there between Jan. 23 and Feb. 2, and has been declining steadily since then. Outside China, there were at that point 2,074 cases in 28 countries, and 23 deaths. WHO noted that the sudden increase in cases in Italy, Iran and South Korea were "deeply concerning" but that all countries should have confidence that "this virus can be contained."
  • a sign on the side of a building: Mobile World Congress, the biggest event of the year for the mobile phone industry, was scheduled to take place the week of Feb. 24. But with less than two weeks to go before the show, as more and more companies pulled out because of coronavirus worries, MWC officials canceled the event.
  • a vase of flowers on a table: A card with a portrait of Dr. Li Wenliang is surrounded by flowers at Li's hospital in Wuhan on Feb. 7. The 34-year-old Chinese doctor is considered a whistleblower for speaking out about the rising cases of pneumonia in an online chat room during the early days of the outbreak. He passed away Feb. 6 as a result of the virus.
  • a person in a body of water with a city in the background: A Dream World cruise ship docks at Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Kowloon Bya, Hong Kong, on Feb. 7. Authorities are keeping 3,600 passengers and crew members under quarantine due to concerns they were inadvertently exposed to the coronavirus by eight passengers from mainland China.
  • a group of people on a train track near a fence: A resident rides a motorbike across an empty track on Feb. 7 in Wuhan, China. The city went into lockdown due to the spread of the novel coronavirus.
  • A Turkish Armed Forces cargo plane lands at the Wuhan airport on Feb. 1 in China to evacuate citizens of Turkey and other nearby countries from the heart of the deadly coronavirus outbreak.
  • a man holding a sign: People walk past a news banner that reads "Killer virus now spreading fast" at London's Bank station on Jan. 31, the same day the US declared the coronavirus a public health emergency.
  • Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wearing a suit and tie talking on a cell phone: Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the World Health Organization's director-general, speaks during a press conference in Geneva on Jan.30. The same day, the UN health agency declared an international emergency over the coronavirus, a rarely used designation meant to help with improved international coordination in tackling the disease.
  • a person in a yellow truck on the street: Workers from a funeral home disinfect themselves after handling a coronavirus victim in a hospital in Wuhan, China, on Jan. 30.
  • a yellow and white boat sitting next to a body of water: The Costa Smeralda cruise ship is seen docked at the Italian port of Civitavecchia. A passenger showed symptoms of the coronavirus on Jan. 30. Around 6,000 passengers of the ship were quarantined after a Chinese woman fell ill.
  • a person standing in front of a building: Nurses work inside an isolation ward in a government-run medical clinic in Hyderabad, India, on Jan. 27. Patients coming from Hong Kong have been requesting medical checks as a preventive measure.
  • a group of people standing in front of a mirror posing for the camera: An Indonesian health official checks the temperature of a passenger upon his arrival at the Sultan Iskandar Muda International Airport in Blang Bintang on Jan. 27. By that date, an effective quarantine was in place in China, with all flights in and out of Wuhan grounded and a ban on Chinese tour groups domestically and abroad.
  • a group of people in a room: Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as the week kicked off Jan. 27. US stocks fell sharply in morning trading as fears over the spreading coronavirus continue to unsettle global markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell over 400 points after the opening bell. Markets recovered, but...A month later, on Feb. 24, the Dow fell more than 1,000 points, for its biggest daily decline since 2018.
  • a close up of a person: As a preventive measure following the coronavirus outbreak, a Hong Kong passenger wears latex gloves while traveling on an underground metro train on Jan. 27.
  • a construction site: Diggers excavate for a new 1,000-bed hospital in Wuhan, China, on Jan. 25. The goal for the rapidly built temporary hospital: help accommodate a growing number of coronavirus patients.
  • a group of people walking down the street: Wary of the coronavirus, people in Hong Kong wear surgical masks in public. On Jan. 25, Hong Kong declared a citywide emergency, its highest warning level, canceling all official Chinese New Year celebrations and extending school breaks for the holiday until Feb. 17.
  • a man standing in front of a refrigerator: A worker in protective gear in Seoul, South Korea, sprays disinfectant in a train on Jan. 24 amid rising public concerns over the spread of the coronavirus, which medical experts confirmed can be passed from human to human.
  • a man standing in front of a sign: A notice at Japan's Narita airport on Jan. 24 shows a canceled flight to Wuhan, China. Japan is a popular travel destination for Chinese tourists during the Lunar New Year holiday, but on Jan. 25 China said it'd clamp down on travel for some of its citizens heading abroad, including suspending tour groups and temporarily halting the sale of flight and hotel packages.
  • a close up of a person: Virologist Sandro Halbe looks at cell culture dishes in a lab at the Institute of Virology at the Philipps University of Marburg in Germany on Jan. 24. Virologists at the university are involved in the development of a vaccine to combat the lung pathogen.
  • a group of people looking at the camera: Women with face masks shop in a Bangkok store decorated for the Lunar New Year on Jan. 24, after four people with the coronavirus were detected in Thailand.
  • a close up of a bottle: In Terminal 4 of London's Heathrow Airport, a public health poster shows the symptoms of coronavirus.
  • a person standing in front of a building: An environmental activist pickets in front of the Russian Foreign Ministry headquarters in Moscow on Jan. 24 demanding a thorough screening of passengers arriving from Southeast Asia.
  • a couple of people that are standing in front of a building: Tourists in Scotland wear face masks as they visit Edinburgh Castle on Jan. 24. The Scottish government created a daily incident management team to monitor the developing situation.
  • a man wearing a helmet: This photo was taken Jan. 24 in the meeting room of the infectious diseases task force at the Munich Airport. The task force fights illnesses like SARS, swine flu, measles and chickenpox.
  • a group of people sitting at a table: Workers step up production of protective masks in Handan, China, on Jan. 22. Masks and other medical supplies quickly went out of stock in some places.
Full screen
1/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A never-before-seen deadly virus first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan has infected people in China and around the world with a pneumonia-like illness. The disease has caused alarm worldwide, from Australia to Italy, Iran to Japan, Singapore to the US.Here are some scenes from around the globe as scientists and citizens struggle to understand and contain the illness. Zhou Qiong, a doctor in the department of respiratory medicine at Union Hospital in Wuhan, China, is a member of an "assault team" formed to fight the coronavirus. The hospital is affiliated with Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.Keep updated on the fast-moving developments here. Originally published Jan. 25 and updated as new developments occur.
2/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
In Ankara, Turkey, on Feb. 25, an ambulance transports passengers and crew of a Turkish Airlines plane from Tehran to a local hospital for a 14-day quarantine and to be tested for possible coronavirus infection.Two weeks earlier, on Feb. 11, the World Health Organization officially named the virus SARS-CoV-2, and the resulting illness COVID-19.
3/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A pre-triage medical tent stands ready in front of Santa Maria Nuova Hospital in Florence on Feb. 25 as Tuscany reported its first two cases of COVID-19.Also on Feb. 25, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned that coronavirus cases in the US are likely to spread, though the immediate threat to the general public is still low.
4/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Epidemiologist Dr. Bruce Aylward, of the World Health Organization, shows graphics documenting the coronavirus outbreak at a press conference in Geneva on Feb. 25.A day earlier, WHO noted that China had, as of that morning, reported more than 77,000 cases of COVID-19, including more than 2,600 deaths. It also said that the epidemic peaked and plateaued there between Jan. 23 and Feb. 2, and has been declining steadily since then. Outside China, there were at that point 2,074 cases in 28 countries, and 23 deaths. WHO noted that the sudden increase in cases in Italy, Iran and South Korea were "deeply concerning" but that all countries should have confidence that "this virus can be contained."
5/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Mobile World Congress, the biggest event of the year for the mobile phone industry, was scheduled to take place the week of Feb. 24. But with less than two weeks to go before the show, as more and more companies pulled out because of coronavirus worries, MWC officials canceled the event.
6/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A card with a portrait of Dr. Li Wenliang is surrounded by flowers at Li's hospital in Wuhan on Feb. 7. The 34-year-old Chinese doctor is considered a whistleblower for speaking out about the rising cases of pneumonia in an online chat room during the early days of the outbreak. He passed away Feb. 6 as a result of the virus.
7/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A Dream World cruise ship docks at Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Kowloon Bya, Hong Kong, on Feb. 7. Authorities are keeping 3,600 passengers and crew members under quarantine due to concerns they were inadvertently exposed to the coronavirus by eight passengers from mainland China.
8/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A resident rides a motorbike across an empty track on Feb. 7 in Wuhan, China. The city went into lockdown due to the spread of the novel coronavirus.
9/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A Turkish Armed Forces cargo plane lands at the Wuhan airport on Feb. 1 in China to evacuate citizens of Turkey and other nearby countries from the heart of the deadly coronavirus outbreak.
10/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
People walk past a news banner that reads "Killer virus now spreading fast" at London's Bank station on Jan. 31, the same day the US declared the coronavirus a public health emergency.
11/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the World Health Organization's director-general, speaks during a press conference in Geneva on Jan.30. The same day, the UN health agency declared an international emergency over the coronavirus, a rarely used designation meant to help with improved international coordination in tackling the disease.
12/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Workers from a funeral home disinfect themselves after handling a coronavirus victim in a hospital in Wuhan, China, on Jan. 30.
13/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
The Costa Smeralda cruise ship is seen docked at the Italian port of Civitavecchia. A passenger showed symptoms of the coronavirus on Jan. 30. Around 6,000 passengers of the ship were quarantined after a Chinese woman fell ill.
14/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Nurses work inside an isolation ward in a government-run medical clinic in Hyderabad, India, on Jan. 27. Patients coming from Hong Kong have been requesting medical checks as a preventive measure.
15/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
An Indonesian health official checks the temperature of a passenger upon his arrival at the Sultan Iskandar Muda International Airport in Blang Bintang on Jan. 27. By that date, an effective quarantine was in place in China, with all flights in and out of Wuhan grounded and a ban on Chinese tour groups domestically and abroad.
16/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as the week kicked off Jan. 27. US stocks fell sharply in morning trading as fears over the spreading coronavirus continue to unsettle global markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell over 400 points after the opening bell. Markets recovered, but...A month later, on Feb. 24, the Dow fell more than 1,000 points, for its biggest daily decline since 2018.
17/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
As a preventive measure following the coronavirus outbreak, a Hong Kong passenger wears latex gloves while traveling on an underground metro train on Jan. 27.
18/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Diggers excavate for a new 1,000-bed hospital in Wuhan, China, on Jan. 25. The goal for the rapidly built temporary hospital: help accommodate a growing number of coronavirus patients.
19/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Wary of the coronavirus, people in Hong Kong wear surgical masks in public. On Jan. 25, Hong Kong declared a citywide emergency, its highest warning level, canceling all official Chinese New Year celebrations and extending school breaks for the holiday until Feb. 17.
20/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A worker in protective gear in Seoul, South Korea, sprays disinfectant in a train on Jan. 24 amid rising public concerns over the spread of the coronavirus, which medical experts confirmed can be passed from human to human.
21/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
A notice at Japan's Narita airport on Jan. 24 shows a canceled flight to Wuhan, China. Japan is a popular travel destination for Chinese tourists during the Lunar New Year holiday, but on Jan. 25 China said it'd clamp down on travel for some of its citizens heading abroad, including suspending tour groups and temporarily halting the sale of flight and hotel packages.
22/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Virologist Sandro Halbe looks at cell culture dishes in a lab at the Institute of Virology at the Philipps University of Marburg in Germany on Jan. 24. Virologists at the university are involved in the development of a vaccine to combat the lung pathogen.
23/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Women with face masks shop in a Bangkok store decorated for the Lunar New Year on Jan. 24, after four people with the coronavirus were detected in Thailand.
24/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
In Terminal 4 of London's Heathrow Airport, a public health poster shows the symptoms of coronavirus.
25/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
An environmental activist pickets in front of the Russian Foreign Ministry headquarters in Moscow on Jan. 24 demanding a thorough screening of passengers arriving from Southeast Asia.
26/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Tourists in Scotland wear face masks as they visit Edinburgh Castle on Jan. 24. The Scottish government created a daily incident management team to monitor the developing situation.
27/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
This photo was taken Jan. 24 in the meeting room of the infectious diseases task force at the Munich Airport. The task force fights illnesses like SARS, swine flu, measles and chickenpox.
28/28 SLIDES © Provided by CNET
Workers step up production of protective masks in Handan, China, on Jan. 22. Masks and other medical supplies quickly went out of stock in some places.
28/28 SLIDES

Originally published Feb. 29, 11:04 a.m. PT, and updated with details as information has emerged.

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