Coronavirus Update: World Health Organization Declares COVID-19 Outbreak A Global Pandemic

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday officially declared the ongoing coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic, as the virus has spread to 114 countries.

"WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction," WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a press briefing.

"In the days and weeks ahead, we expect to see the number of Covid-19 cases, the number of deaths, and the number of affected countries climb even higher," Tedros continued.

There are more than 118,000 cases of coronavirus around the world, with the virus originating at an animal and seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan. The global death toll is over 4,200 people.

Johns Hopkins University says that more than 66,000 people have recovered from the virus.

Outbreaks are severe in China, Italy, South Korea and Iran. On Monday, the entire country of Italy went on lockdown to prevent the spread of the virus, with more than 600 people having died in the European nation due to the crisis. There are over 9,000 cases of the virus in Iran, with 354 deaths, the largest in the Middle East region.

South Korea currently has at least 7,755 people infected, with many of the cases tied to a controversial religious cult. The virus has paralyzed the Chinese economy, with the country’s GDP possibly contracting in the first quarter of 2020 for the first time in decades.

The virus has also had impact on the United States, with the majority of the more than 1,000 cases in Washington, New York and California.