Coronavirus: Death Toll Rises To 636 In China, Newborn Becomes Youngest Case

The Death toll in China's novel coronavirus epidemic has climbed to 636 with 73 mortalities on Thursday, Chinese health officials said on Friday. Hubei province and its provincial capital Wuhan, which are the epicentre of the virus outbreak, reported 69 deaths on Thursday while Jilin, Henan, Guangdong and Hainan provinces reported one each, China's National Health Commission said.

A total of 73 people died on Thursday and 31,161 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection had been reported from 31 provincial-level regions, the commission said. Also, a total of 1,540 patients infected with the virus had been discharged from hospital after recovery by the end of Thursday, it said, highlighting that a large number of people getting cured.

Also Read: 'We Can Consider Request': India On Evacuating Pakistani Students From Coronavirus-Hit Wuhan

A baby in Wuhan, who was born last week, tested positive for the virus 36 hours after he was delivered, the Associated Press reported. Authorities said he was the youngest person known to be infected with the new coronavirus, according to the report.

"The baby was immediately separated from the mother after the birth and has been under artificial feeding. There was no close contact with the parents, yet it was diagnosed with the disease," Zeng Lingkong, director of neonatal diseases at Wuhan Children’s Hospital, told Chinese TV.

Also Read: Tokyo Olympics Organisers Slam Misinformation Over Coronavirus, Says Games Will 'Go Ahead As Planned'

On Friday morning, the two most popular hashtags on Weibo, China's version of Twitter, were about the death of Dr. Li Wenliang, the doctor who was reprimanded by the government when he first sounded the alarm on the coronavirus.

RELATED