China has reportedly begun cremating the bodies of those who have died from coronavirus in secret as the number of people diagnosed with coronavirus rises to almost 8000.

It has now infected more people in China than were sickened there during the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak.

The number of cases jumped to 7771 in China, surpassing the 5327 people diagnosed with SARS, while the amount of global cases confirmed was at 7894 on Wednesday.

Seven cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Australia across three states.

The death toll, which rose to 170 on Wednesday, is still less than half the number who died in China from SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome. Scientists say there are many questions to be answered about the new virus, including just how easily it spreads and how severe it is.

View photos Doctors disinfect themselves to protect against coronavirus before entering an infectious disease and fever clinic at a hospital in Nanjing City. Source: AAP More

William Yang, a journalist for German publication Deutsche-Welle, claims China is “hiding” the number of deaths from the virus.

Yang cited Initium Media as a “credible” source and journalists had “interviewed people working at local cremation centres”.

The sources confirmed “many dead bodies” were sent directly from hospitals to the cremation centres “without properly identifying these patients”.

“Which means there are patients who died from the virus but not adding to the official record. That shows the current death toll of 133 that we are seeing is way too low,” Yang tweeted before the death toll rose to 170.





... without properly identifying these patients, which means there are patients who died from the virus but not adding to the official record. That shows the current death toll of 133 that we are seeing is way too low. — William Yang (@WilliamYang120) January 29, 2020

His allegations of China misleading the public are also backed by a nurse who claims in a video 90,000 people have been diagnosed with the virus.

Speaking in Chinese, with subtitles, she calls for help.

“We don’t care what the government says,” she says.

“I will tell you through social media. Everyone, please donate masks, glasses and clothes to Wuhan.

“Please help us. Please donate disposable goggles, disposable masks and disposable clothing. Currently our resources are not enough.”

‘Great concern’

The World Health Organisation’s emergencies chief said the few cases of human-to-human spread of the virus outside China — in Japan, Germany, Canada and Vietnam — were of “great concern” and were part of the reason the UN health agency’s director-general was reconvening a committee of experts on Thursday to assess whether the outbreak should be declared a global emergency.

Dr Michael Ryan spoke at a news conference in Geneva after returning from a trip to Beijing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other senior government leaders.

He said China was taking “extraordinary measures in the face of an extraordinary challenge” posed by the outbreak.

View photos Staff outside a hospital in Beijing in protective gear. Source: AAP More

Dr Ryan estimated the death rate of the new virus at two per cent, but said the figure was very preliminary.

With fluctuating numbers of cases and deaths, scientists are only able to produce a rough estimate of the fatality rate and it is likely many milder cases of the virus are being missed.

In comparison, the SARS virus killed about 10 per cent of people who caught it. The new virus is from the coronavirus family, which includes those that can cause the common cold as well as more serious illnesses such as SARS and MERS.

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