A Hartnell College student tested for COVID-19, also known as the novel coronavirus, has been found not to have the virus, college officials say.

Sunday morning, the college sent out an email informing the community that a student had become ill and was being tested for the coronavirus. By Monday afternoon, the Monterey County Health Department informed Hartnell that the test had not returned positive.

As of Tuesday, no one in Monterey County has been diagnosed with the coronavirus.

The college urged students to follow guidelines similar to those put out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in order to stay healthy.

"We continue to observe existing policies, while reviewing and preparing contingencies in the event the situation changes over time," said Hartnell Director of Communications and Marketing Scott Faust by text Monday. "We are not screening students for coronavirus, but as always, we strongly encourage anyone who is ill not to attend class or come to work."

Faust did not know whether individual class attendance policies were being modified by teachers to accommodate students staying home due to sickness.

The number of coronavirus-linked fatalities in the nation climbed to 21 Sunday, with 547 confirmed cases across 34 states and the District of Columbia.

All but three of the deaths have been in Washington state; two were in Florida and one in California.

The virus has surged in the U.S. in the last week. The second American died March 1, just hours after the World Health Organization had reported 62 confirmed U.S. cases. There were 117 new U.S. cases announced Saturday alone.

Coronaviruses get their name from their appearance under a microscope – they look something like a crown, a sphere with spikes jutting out.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the grouping of coronaviruses that originated in Wuhan causes a mild to moderate respiratory tract infection in most people.

Danger presents when the upper respiratory infection becomes a lower respiratory infection. Those can be difficult to treat, and in the worst cases, can lead to death.

In general, the symptoms of a coronavirus infection are practically identical to the flu.

They include:

runny nose

headache

cough

sore throat

shortness of breath

fever over 101

general feeling of unwellness or malaise

To protect yourself from the coronavirus, the recommendations currently similar to those for influenza.

Wash your hands often for more than 20 seconds with soap and water, or use hand sanitizer.

Avoid touching your face with unwashed hands.

Avoid contact with someone who is actively sick.

Use a mask or tissues to cover your mouth, and cough into the corner of your arm or your clothes.

Disinfect high-touch objects at home, work or school, such as countertops or door handles.

USA Today contributed to this report. This article was updated with additional information from Hartnell.

Kate Cimini is a multimedia journalist for The Californian. Call her at (831) 776-5137 or email kcimini@thecalifornian.com.Subscribeto support local journalism.