The first United States case was reported in the state of Washington.

AUSTIN, Texas — The world is on edge as the deadly coronavirus continues to spread. And now, Austin Public Health leaders said they are watching out for symptoms of the new virus.

Austin Public Health tweeted Wednesday that it is coordinating with the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and the State of Texas to monitor and prepare for any possible local cases.

The department is also working with local doctors to teach them to recognize the signs of the virus. The 2019 Novel Coronavirus likely circulated among animals before evolving and infecting people. The CDC believes a "person-to-person spread is occurring." So far, 17 people have died from the illness.

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In the U.S., there has been one case of the norovirus in the state of Washington. The CDC said that person had recently traveled to Wuhan, China, where the illness originated. Additional cases have been reported in Thailand, Japan and the Republic of Korea, the CDC said.

Thursday, the World Health Organization decided to not declare a global emergency. About 11 million Wuhan residents are virtually not allowed to leave the city.

To check on this "rapidly evolving situation," the CDC suggests that people check their website.