A 12-year-old girl confirmed infected with COVID-19 has died in Belgium, health officials said Tuesday. Fatality at such a young age “is a very rare occurrence,” said government spokesman Dr Emmanuel Andre, adding that her death “shook us”.

The girl had had a fever for three days before her death and tested positive for COVID-19, said another spokesman, Steven Van Gucht. No other details were given about her case, including whether she had any underlying health problems.

It was the first death of a child with coronavirus in Belgium and the youngest known fatality in Europe to date from the disease. Last week, France reported the death of a 16-year-old girl from coronavirus in the greater Paris region.

Although serious COVID-19 infections are uncommon among the young, some exceptional cases have been taken to hospital intensive-care wards, as U.S. health authorities have pointed out.

–CBS/AFP

Airbnb has promised to devote $250 million to helping its host home owners survive the wave of cancellations prompted by the coronavirus epidemic. 

In an open letter published online Monday, the company said it would use the money to help compensate hosts for guest bookings cancelled “due to a COVID-19 related circumstance” for stays between March 14 and May 31. 

“We will pay you 25% of what you would normally receive through your cancellation policy. This applies retroactively to all COVID-19 related cancellations during this period. This cost will be covered entirely by Airbnb,” the company said.

The San Francisco-based online rental marketing company boasts about 150 million users worldwide.

Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp., which converted its liquid crystal display factory into one churning out medical masks, sent its first shipment Tuesday.

The plant in central Japan is set to make 150,000 masks a day, with production being ramped up later to 500,000 masks a day. The shipment was in response to a Japanese government order, and details were not immediately available on how the masks would get distributed.

The masks will be sold to consumers online later, according to the company, owned by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., also known as Foxconn. Masks are in short supply at stores in some parts of Japan because of a surge in demand.

–Associated Press

The Environmental Protection Agency has a message for Americans — watch what you flush.

“Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is encouraging all Americans to only flush toilet paper,” the agency says in a statement.

Americans are using far more disinfecting wipes in the coronavirus outbreak, the EPA noted, but disposing of them improperly threatens plumbing, sewer and septic systems.

EPA news statements on aspects of the pandemic shutting down economies and societies around the globe have been limited and include addressing the effectiveness of disinfectants.

The EPA says it’s critical that the nation have “fully operational wastewater services” to contain the virus and protect against other health risks.

–Associated Press

The superintendent of a home for retired service members in Massachusetts has been placed on leave after the deaths of 11 veteran residents. Five of the vets who died at the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke, west of Boston, tested positive for COVID-19. Test results on five others were still pending. The cause of one death was unknown.

Eleven other residents at the home and five staff members have also tested positive for the coronavirus. Test results were pending for 25 more veteran residents.

“It is imperative that the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home provide a safe environment for the veteran residents, and the dedicated staff who serve them,” said Massachusetts Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Dan Tsai.

Superintendent Bennett Walsh was placed on administrative leave on Monday. Val Liptak, CEO of Western Massachusetts Hospital, will assume responsibility.

-Reporting by CBS Boston.

Hundreds of stranded Americans left Nepal on a repatriation flight Tuesday, days after a complete lockdown was imposed in the Himalayan nation to help fight the coronavirus.

A Qatar Airways flight arranged by the U.S. government flew out 302 Americans from Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport to Washington, D.C. The elderly, families with children and people with a medical condition were given priority on the flight.

The U.S. Embassy in Nepal estimates that 3,000 to 4,000 Americans are still in the country, but says that not all of them are seeking to leave. Plans for future flights to evacuate more of the Americans were unclear.

Passengers on board Tuesday’s flight said they paid $1,250 for the seat home.

One of New York City’s most iconic landmarks is putting on a light show to pay tribute to medical workers treating coronavirus patients. The lights at the top of the Empire State Building flashed red and white as they revolved around its famous needle Monday night, to resemble the lights that accompany a siren. 

And the upper floors had pulsing red lights, similar to a heartbeat, in what’s being dubbed “the heartbeat of America.”

The light show will go on until the end of the month and includes a 9 p.m. synchronized performance set to Alicia Keys’ “Empire State of Mind.”

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, who was sued by gun-rights groups after trying to shut down firearms dealers during the coronavirus pandemic, said Monday he’s abandoning the effort. The sheriff said he’s heeding an advisory issued by the federal Department of Homeland Security Saturday that listed gun and ammunition dealers as “essential critical infrastructure workers.”

Villanueva called the non-binding memo “persuasive” and announced that his department won’t order or recommend closing businesses that sell or repair firearms or sell ammunition in the nation’s most populous county.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has said that each of the state’s 58 counties can decide for themselves whether to list firearms dealers as nonessential businesses that should be subject to closure while the state seeks to limit the spread of COVID-19.

– Associated Press

The NCAA on Monday voted to allow Division I spring-sport athletes who had their seasons shortened by the coronavirus pandemic to have an additional year of eligibility. The extra year of eligibility will be granted to all spring-sport athletes, regardless of their current class.

The decision does not guarantee current seniors will still receive financial aid if they return for the extra year, according to The Associated Press.

Winter sports, such as basketball, were not included in the decision. Although the winter season was cut short — basketball conference tournaments and the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments were notably suspended or canceled — the NCAA Division I Council excluded those sports because athletes had completed most or all of the regular seasons.

– Associated Press