Coronavirus patients are trying to spread the disease by deliberately spitting at health care workers, it has been claimed.

A South African teacher trapped in Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak, said the infected were also spitting on elevator buttons.

She is too 'afraid to go outside' in case she is struck with the deadly disease, as figures show cases have tripled in just three days.

Coronavirus can be spread from person to person via a sneeze or cough, and this strain has been regarded as highly contagious.

The number of people confirmed to have been infected with the Wuhan coronavirus has now exceeded 7,100 since the outbreak began almost a month ago.

Some 170 people have now died, most of whom lived in Wuhan, now a deserted city because of an unprecedented lockdown by Chinese officials.

Jessika Bailing, a South African teacher trapped Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak, said the infected were also spitting on elevator buttons

Coronavirus patients are deliberately spitting at health care workers to try and spread the killer disease, it has been claimed. Pictured, a patient at the Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University being treated by medical staff in protective suits

Ms Bailing said: 'I covered myself from head-to-toe with gloves on my hands, glasses to cover my eyes and of course, my mask'

Jessika Bailing said a viral video showed a patient spitting on elevator buttons. Pictured, medical staff treat a patient with the new coronavirus at the Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan

World Health Organization figures show just 2,014 patients had been struck down with the SARS-like infection by Sunday, January 26. This has now risen dramatically to 7,087, with cases in the US, Australia and Canada. As well as a dramatic increase in cases of the never-before-seen virus, figures also show the number of deaths have spiralled

Ms Bailing, 23, is 'so scared' to go outside and had only done so to do a 'terrifying supplies run'

Ms Bailing, the South African teacher trapped Wuhan, told the Metro: 'I've heard shocking stories about infected people going out of their way to contaminate others by taking off their masks and spitting in doctors' faces.

'I saw one video of a man spitting on all of the buttons in an apartment elevator.'

The 23-year-old said she is 'so scared' to go outside and had only done so to do a 'terrifying supplies run'.

She added: 'I covered myself from head-to-toe with gloves on my hands, glasses to cover my eyes and of course, my mask.'

The killer coronavirus outbreak has now killed 170 people and struck down more than 7,000 in 19 different countries. Cases have been spotted in Canada, US, France and Australia

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THIS CORONAVIRUS? What is this virus? The virus has been identified as a new type of coronavirus. Coronaviruses are a large family of pathogens, most of which cause mild lung infections such as the common cold. But coronaviruses can also be deadly. SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, is caused by a coronavirus and killed hundreds of people in China and Hong Kong in the early 2000s. Can the Wuhan coronavirus kill? Yes – 170 people have so far died after testing positive for the virus. What are the symptoms? Some people who catch the Wuhan coronavirus may not have any symptoms at all, or only very mild ones like a sore throat or a headache. Others may suffer from a fever, cough or trouble breathing. And a small proportion of patients will go on to develop severe infection which can damage the lungs or cause pneumonia, a life-threatening condition which causes swelling and fluid build-up in the lungs. How did it start and spread? The first cases identified were among people connected to the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan. Cases have since been identified around China and are known to have spread from person to person. CLICK HERE TO SEE MAILONLINE'S FULL Q&A ON THE CORONAVIRUS Advertisement

As cases of the new coronavirus rise, fears are growing that the outbreak in mainland China is now bigger than the 2003 SARS epidemic, when 5,327 cases of the killer virus were confirmed.

There were just 445 cases of coronavirus by Wednesday last week - meaning the outbreak that is continuing to escalate has increased in size by almost 14-fold in the space of seven days.

Cases have tripled since Sunday, while deaths have doubled. Fifty-six deaths were recorded by the end of Sunday, but have reached 106 as of yesterday.

China's National Health Commission warned the spread of the infection is only going to get worse, with Dr Zhong Nanshan fearing the crisis will peak 'in the next 10 days'.

Leading scientists have made stark warnings that there could be tens of thousands of patients already infected – far more than the official toll.

As Wuhan and other cities in the Hubei province remain in lockdown, sources claim hundreds of British nationals stuck in coronavirus-hit Wuhan are gearing up to be flown back to London tomorrow.

Health officials in the capital Beijing today warned cases are on the rise. The city has one confirmed death and 102 confirmed cases of the virus so far.

And the United Arab Emirates has become the latest country to confirm cases, announcing four patients from the same family had caught the infection.

Britons are due to be evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan tomorrow and will be quarantined for two weeks in a UK military base. Around 200 British nationals are thought to be in the Chinese city.

Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, announced the news following criticism over the handling of Britons returning from the city in previous weeks.

In a desperate attempt to prevent an outbreak on British soil, Mr Hancock begged travellers to stay indoors, avoid contact with anyone and ring NHS 111 if they have any symptoms.

Furious Brits said it's a 'bit f****** late' to tell travellers from Wuhan to 'self-isolate' amid fears the killer coronavirus is spreading between people even if they do not show any symptoms.

Experts in China have said there is evidence that people could transmit the virus without showing any symptoms, although UK experts think the risk is low.

Experts say the difficulty of containing the coronavirus is that so many patients have mild, cold-like symptoms and don't realise they have the infection – but it can quickly turn deadly