John Bacon | USA TODAY

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U.S. Consulate staffers and other Americans in Wuhan will be evacuated to California on Wednesday as the death toll rose to 106 from a new coronavirus racing through China.

In the U.S., Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Tuesday that the number of cases remained at five, with no deaths. Researchers are still trying to determine the incubation period of the virus and how easily it can be spread by infected people who are not yet experiencing symptoms, he said.

"This is a potentially very serious threat, but at this point Americans should not worry for their own safety," Azar said. "This is a very fast-moving, constantly changing situation."

Azar said U.S. health officials have repeatedly offered to send a team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to China to help. He said talks with Chinese health officials had been positive and he was hopeful that an arrangement could be made.

He may get his wish. The World Health Organization announced that China has agreed to allow international experts to visit China "as soon as possible" to help advance understanding of the outbreak and to guide global response.

"More cooperation and transparency are the most important steps you can take toward a more effective response," Azar said.

Wuhan, a city of 11 million in the central China province of Hubei, is the epicenter of the outbreak. The city is one of more than a dozen under tight lockdown as the government struggles to contain the virus.

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The State Department said some private, paying U.S. citizens would be added to the charter flight leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport bound for Ontario, California.

"This capacity is extremely limited and if there is insufficient ability to transport everyone who expresses interest, priority will be given to individuals at greater risk from coronavirus," the department said in a statement.

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About 1,000 Americans are believed to be in Wuhan, although not all want to leave. Some are married to Chinese nationals, who are not eligible for the flight, which is scheduled to carry about 240 passengers and crew.

The State Department said it was working with Chinese officials to identify alternative routes for U.S. citizens to depart Wuhan over land.

Those provided seats on the plane will face health screenings before boarding. The flight will refuel in Anchorage, Alaska, and the state's Health Department said anyone who appears ill won't be allowed on the plane. Passengers then will be screened "numerous times" during the flight and again in Alaska before continuing to California, the department said in a statement.

Azar said it had not yet been determined whether the passengers would face quarantine upon arrival in California.

The European Union said it would send two planes to evacuate Europeans, mostly French, from the Wuhan areas. Britain was arranging flights for some of its citizens, and Japan and South Korea were among other nations organizing or considering evacuation flights for their citizens.

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Death toll rises to more than 100

The new coronavirus has sickened more than 4,500 people across China, and 106 people have died. China’s National Health Commission said more than 1,700 cases and 26 deaths were reported Tuesday alone, including the first death in Beijing.

More than 70 cases have been confirmed outside China, including the five in the U.S. None of those patients have died.

Symptoms of the illness include fever, cough and shortness of breath, and they may appear two to 14 days after exposure. Older people and those with compromised immune systems are most vulnerable to symptoms.

Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said 110 people in the U.S. are "under investigation" for the virus but added that human-to-human transmission of the virus has not been documented in the U.S.

There is no vaccine, although drugmakers are scrambling to create one.

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Gates Foundation gives $10 million to fight virus

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced that it is immediately committing $10 million in emergency funds and "corresponding technical support" to help first responders in China and Africa accelerate their efforts to contain the global spread. The foundation said it is already working with a Chinese public and private sector partners to help identify and confirm cases, safely isolate and care for patients and develop treatments and vaccines.

Hong Kong cuts rail links to mainland

Hong Kong has confirmed eight cases. Chief Executive Carrie Lam, during a news conference in which she and her staff wore surgical masks, said Tuesday that train service to the mainland will be halted and flights and bus service drastically reduced.

Lam was forced to drop a plan to use two empty public housing blocks as a quarantine site for coronavirus patients after protesters clashed with police and set fire to the buildings.

US expands China travel advisory

On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the State Department expanded their travel advisories to cover all of China because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The CDC issued a Level 3 travel warning, its highest level, recommending travelers avoid all nonessential travel to China. Previously only Wuhan was at a Level 3. The rest of China was rated Level 2, which recommends "practice enhanced precautions.''

The broader travel alerts come as the U.S. plans to expand screening for the virus to 20 airports from the current five.

Coronaviruses look like crowns

Coronaviruses get their name from their appearance under a microscope – they look something like a crown, a sphere with spikes jutting out. They are part of a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to pneumonia. The best way to treat symptoms is to take pain and fever medications, use a room humidifier or take a hot shower to help ease a sore throat and cough, drink plenty of liquids and rest, the CDC says. Because this virus is new and no vaccine has been formulated for it yet, there is concern that it could prove difficult to control.

Contributing: Dawn Gilbertson