UPDATED: March 5, 2020 at 8:00 p.m.

Governor Andrew Cuomo announced 11 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus in New York state Thursday, bringing the total number infected to 22.

The novel coronavirus, or COVID-19 — a respiratory disease experts believe originated in Wuhan, China — has spread to at least 81 countries, infected over 97,000 people and killed at least 3,300. 12 people in the United States had died of the virus as of Thursday evening.

State officials had confirmed 11 cases of COVID-19 in New York as of Wednesday. Nine new cases were connected to a single Westchester County lawyer who had been the second New York resident to test positive for the virus.

Cuomo announced eleven new cases had been confirmed in New York as of Thursday evening. Eight of the cases are located in Westchester County, two are in New York City, and one is in Nassau County.

State officials will continue to search for connections and notify those who might be at risk of infection, Cuomo said.

“Whenever you find a case, it’s about containment, and doing the best you can to keep the circle as tight as possible,” Cuomo said.

The first Westchester county patient, who had an underlying respiratory condition, is in critical condition at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, CNN reported.

Yeshiva University, where the Westchester patient’s son attends college, canceled classes at its Washington Heights campus Wednesday as a precautionary measure. His daughter’s high school has also voluntarily closed.

Syracuse University has taken precautionary measures this semester to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

SU has restricted university travel to three countries experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks, suspended the SU Abroad program in Florence, Italy and begun devising a plan to finish the semester online if on-campus classes are suspended.

The university also restricted all travel from SU Abroad centers to countries with travel advisories ranked a Level 2 or above from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

New York state officials are most concerned about populations especially vulnerable to the virus, such as senior citizens and those with compromised immune systems, Cuomo said. Several residents of a nursing home near Seattle, Washington have died of COVID-19.

There is a possibility of continued COVID-19 spreading in New York, Cuomo said. But this should not be a cause of panic for New Yorkers, he said.

“We have an epidemic caused by coronavirus, but we have a pandemic that is caused by fear,” Cuomo said. “There are going to be many, many people who test positive. By definition, the more you test, the more people you will find that test positive.”

Published on March 4, 2020 at 9:48 pm

Contact Chris: cjhippen@syr.edu