Toronto and the province are better prepared now than they were in 2003 for a viral outbreak, public health officials say.

Officials say they now have access to more data critical to mounting a quicker and appropriate response, compared to the 2003 SARS outbreak that killed 44 people in the GTA and sickened hundreds more.

“We’re ready, we’re prepared,” Dr. David Williams, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, said during a news conference at city hall Friday.

A new coronavirus in China has killed 26 people, sickened hundreds and prompted unprecedented lockdowns of cities in that country during Lunar New Year holiday celebrations.

Close to 830 people have been infected by the illness, the vast majority of them in Wuhan, although cases have been identified in the United States, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam and Hong Kong.

A second case in the U.S. was announced Friday, after a Chicago woman was diagnosed with the new pneumonia-like virus.

There have been no reported cases in Canada as of Friday morning, officials said.

But if there are cases here, officials say the public health system is armed with the proper tools, such as quick turnarounds on lab tests and other detection methods that make the system more robust than it was in 2003 to handle an outbreak.

Williams said public health staff has had practice with other major outbreaks such as Ebola and H1N1.

“We’re light years ahead of where we were in 2003,” he said.

All branches of public health here have had cases of people with travel history to Wuhan coming forward to be assessed. Those tested have been found to have influenza or other common respiratory illnesses that crop up this time of year.

“We continue to monitor that,” Williams said, adding that people who tend to be more susceptible to the virus are older and have existing heart or lung conditions.

Dr. Peter Donnelly, president and CEO of Public Health Ontario, says it’s likely someone in Canada will contract the potentially lethal virus.

But Donnelly says it will “still be business as normal” if a case is identified here.

Donnelly said what’s different since SARs hit 17 years ago is the preparedness and advancement of laboratory and testing methods here.

“They can know within 24 hours if we do have a case,” Donnelly said.

He said international health care agencies now have a full genetic fingerprint of the novel coronavirus.

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“We are confident we can handle this,” he said. “We are not complacent.”

Toronto’s chief public health officer, Dr. Eileen de Villa, said the overall risk of an outbreak is still considered low in Canada.

The city is bracing for increased travel with Lunar New Year festivities, adding the “system is prepared.”

She recommended the public practise good infection prevention protocol like getting the flu vaccine, covering your cough and sneeze, using alcohol hand sanitizer, and staying home when you’re sick.

“We have a stronger public health system that is ready to respond,” she said.

Dr. Theresa Tam, the chief public health officer of Canada, said in a conference call Thursday that “there is no recommendation to wear a mask when you’re going about your daily regular activities.”

“I think first of all, just to reiterate that we have no confirmed cases of this virus in Canada,” Tam said. “And so I think also wearing masks when you’re well is not an effective measure and sometimes it can actually present some risk as you’re putting your fingers up and down your face, removing your mask . . .

“There is certainly one specific scenario where we may want to put a mask on someone — that’s someone who’s actually sick. For example, as you’re entering the health system.”

De Villa cautioned the public to depend on credible sources, like public health department websites, for information.

Toronto Public Health deals with 45,000 cases of communicable diseases annually.

China announced Friday that it is swiftly building a 1,000-bed hospital dedicated to patients infected.

On the eve of the Lunar New Year, transportation was shut down in at least 13 cities, home to more than 36 million people. The cities are Wuhan, where the illness has been concentrated, and 12 of its neighbours in central China’s Hubei province.

With files from David Venn and Star wire services

Jason Miller is a breaking news reporter based in Toronto. Reach him on email: jasonmiller@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @millermotionpic