Coronavirus is a ‘crisis and a big test,’ Xi says

We tracked a lot of developments in the spread of the virus this weekend. Here are the main points:

President Moon Jae-in put South Korea on high alert, a move that empowers the government to lock down cities, after more than 600 cases of the virus were confirmed. Many of them were traced to a secretive religious sect.

Italy locked down the Lombardy region, closed schools, and canceled trade fairs, opera performances, soccer matches and its famed Venice carnival, after a spike in infections — to 132 — made it the country with the most coronavirus cases in Europe. The fear could even be felt at Milan Fashion Week.

The third death linked to the Diamond Princess cruise ship long quarantined in Japan was reported, as the number of confirmed cases reached 634. (Here’s how a luxury vacation with filet mignon, art auctions and packed theaters turned into an epidemiological nightmare.)

Several countries closed their borders with Iran, which has reported the highest number of deaths outside China — eight people, according to state media. Several public events, like concerts, were canceled.

The World Health Organization told African leaders they needed to prepare, noting that 13 African countries were at high risk because of their direct links to China.

Here’s the latest, maps of where the virus has spread and tips for travelers.

A spread ‘much faster than I expected’

Amid all of those developments, it seemed like a good time to get a little perspective. We sat down with our infectious diseases reporter, Donald G. McNeil Jr., who has covered pandemics for nearly two decades.

What worries you about this virus?

It’s more deadly than flu, and it’s spreading like flu. Maybe not quite as fast, but these cases where hundreds of people all get infected in one church or aboard the Diamond Princess — that was scary. That was much faster than I expected.

Why are conspiracy theories gaining traction? We’ve reported on the belief in unfounded claims about the origins of the virus — with some saying it came from a lab in Wuhan, and others, spread by Russian actors, alleging the U.S. is behind the outbreak.