The number of people, who have been infected with a new coronavirus on board of the Diamond Princess cruise ship off the Japanese coast, has risen from 20 to 61, the NHK broadcaster reported on Friday.
The Diamond Princess cruise ship got quarantined off the Japanese port of Yokohama on Monday after reports that one of the passengers had the new type of coronavirus. There are some 3,700 people on board of the vessel.
The new strain of coronavirus - 2019-nCoV - was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan, located in the province of Hubei, in December and has since spread to more than 25 countries. In mainland China, the virus has already left 636 people dead and over 31,000 infected. Last week, the World Health Organisation declared a global health emergency in light of the outbreak.