The risk of spread is “very, very high,” said Ousmane Faye, the chief virologist at the Pasteur Institute in Dakar, “because of all the traffic we have from Europe, from China, from all over.”

The World Health Organization’s Africa arm advised keeping a “social distance” of at least three feet, warning that outbreaks could “overwhelm” dozens of nations continentwide.

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China, where the new coronavirus was first detected, remains the hardest-hit country, with more than 80,000 infections and over 3,000 deaths. South Korea and Italy are also battling rampant transmission, with 6,000 and 3,000 cases of infection, respectively. In sub-Saharan Africa, as of Friday morning, Nigeria, South Africa and Cameroon had all reported one case.

Anxiety that is roiling life abroad has erupted on the continent’s westernmost point. Hand sanitizer and bleach are vanishing from shelves, and hundreds of people have received orders to stay in self-imposed quarantine.

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The Basketball Africa League postponed the start of its inaugural season, which was to take place next week in the seaside capital, and Youssou Ndour, whom Rolling Stone once called the “most famous singer alive” in Senegal, canceled his shows.

Senegalese President Macky Sall met with more than 60 imams Thursday at the Islamic Institute of Dakar, where they discussed the coronavirus, but officials stopped short of halting religious gatherings, saying they would closely monitor the threat.

Only in the event of an emergency would authorities suspend the religious observances, which are seen as deeply private affairs, said Oumar Diene, the secretary general of the National Association of Imams and Ulama of Senegal, a Muslim leaders network.

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“But we are not there yet,” he said.

The government, however, banned public celebrations of International Women’s Day planned for this weekend.

Medical workers have expressed concern that pilgrimages could heighten exposure among the most vulnerable: people outside the realm of big-city resources, in areas where medical facilities tend to lack isolation rooms, respiratory equipment and reliable electricity.

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Senegalese officials say ambulances are ready to pick up and test anyone with symptoms of covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by the new coronavirus. The country’s health ministry, meanwhile, is working with religious leaders to promote good hygiene practices and is publicizing emergency hotline numbers and ramping up support in poorer communities.

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Nearly 40 percent of Senegalese live off the power grid, according to the World Bank’s latest data, and a third subsist on less than $2 per person per day.

But some who live just minutes away from hospitals in town feel unwelcome, they say, because of previous experience, including being turned away because they couldn’t pay upfront for malaria testing.

Sub-Saharan Africa recorded its first eight cases of coronavirus infection over the past two weeks, all of which came from Europe — France, Italy and England. Most patients left their arrival airports before showing symptoms, authorities say.

Health investigators are tracking down the other passengers on the infected people’s flights, as well as others who work and live in areas they visited, and are asking them to remain at home or in hospitals for quarantine or treatment.

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Senegal is approximately 95 percent Muslim, and most people belong to Sufi brotherhoods with centuries of history and massive political power.

Visitors are expected to pour in this month from as far away as Europe and North America for the pilgrimages. The president normally sends delegations.

The timing worries Aida Diop, the head of nursing at a health center in Dakar’s Fann neighborhood.

“Everyone’s getting together,” she said, “and we don’t know how, exactly, to treat this yet.”

Aliou Diack, 36, a streetside coffee seller, planned to take a bus Thursday to Touba, a holy city east of Dakar, for this week’s celebration. The new coronavirus didn’t scare him.

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“Nothing can stop me,” he said.

Along the coast, Abdoulaye Thiaw Laye, the guardian of the Layene brotherhood’s land — a slice of beach in the capital city with a holy cave — shared guidance with followers from his oceanfront tent: If you’re sick, stay home.

In three weeks, thousands of worshipers are expected to convene where he sat.

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They will wash their hands frequently, he said, and keep an eye on poorer members, who can’t always afford to protect themselves.

“The lack of money is the real disease,” Laye said.

He led a special prayer this week.

“May the coronavirus shrink to nothing before it reaches this shore,” he said, “and everywhere else.”

Four miles south, the covid-19 patients — all in stable condition — received treatment at a Fann hospital.

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Raymond Kajomes, 53, straddled his Yamaha motorcycle nearby and called to a friend, “Hey! The coronavirus is right behind us.”

“When I’m working, I put on my gloves,” said Kajomes, who makes his living as a document courier. “It could be anywhere.”

His friend, Moustapha Niang, nodded in agreement.

The painter, 50, worried about his wife, a traveling Italian nurse, who was delivering babies at the moment in her home country. All the schools in Italy had just closed.

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Would she get back okay? Would she face stigma?

“I’m going to give it a month,” he said, “and then I want to go to Italy and make sure everything is fine.”

Niang knew his inner circle could survive an outbreak. He wondered what would happen to some of his neighbors, who clean luxury hotels.

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“I think of the panic in the poor populations,” Ndiaye said. “In general, they have to wait longer, or doctors won’t treat them until they can pay.”

Kader Diagne, a carpenter down the road, intended to take aspirin if he felt sick. Unless illness prevented him from picking up a hammer, he’d rather avoid the doctor.