As coronavirus spreads, here’s what’s been canceled or closed
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The global coronavirus continues to spread, already sickening more than 83,000 people and killing more than 2,800. In the U.S., at least 60 people were being treated for COVID-19, and a case in California has led the Centers for Disease Control to warn the U.S. has likely seen its first case of what experts refer to as “community spread.”
As governments and companies try to stem the spread of the disease, they’re calling off conferences and other large events, as well as closing some tourist attractions. Here is a list of events and destinations that have been affected by the outbreak.
Google News Initiative summit
Google on Friday called off its annual news conference, which would have brought together several hundred media-industry attendees in Sunnyvale, California, in late April. “We regret that we have to cancel our global Google News Initiative summit but the health and wellbeing of our guests is our number one priority,” Richard Gingras, vice president of news, said in a statement.
Geneva International Auto Show
The annual Geneva International Motor Show was canceled Friday as the Swiss government put an immediate ban on all public and private events involving more than 1,000 people, CNET reports. The ban on big events is expected to last until at least March 15.
“We are aware that this measure will have a significant impact on public life,” said Switzerland’s interior minister, Alain Berset.
“However, the move is expected to provide effective protection to people in Switzerland and to public health,” he said. “It should prevent or delay the spread of the disease in Switzerland, thus reducing its momentum.”
The event, originally slated to kick off March 5, was expected to generate up to 250 million Swiss francs (or $257 million) in spending, according to the Associated Press.
Switzerland has reported 15 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus. It borders northern Italy, which has seen the largest cluster of cases in Europe. Other affected events include the traditional Carnival procession in Basel, a ski marathon and several soccer matches, according to the AP.
Concerts in Asia
K-pop group BTS, one of the most popular boy bands in the world, on Friday cancelled April tour dates in Seoul on concerns about the coronavirus. Instead of starting its world tour in Seoul, the band will hold its first show in Santa Clara, California, later in April. Fellow singers Taeyeon and NCT also dropped planned shows for Singapore.
Meanwhile, American pop-punk band Green Day postponed show dates in Asia “due to the health + travel concerns with coronavirus,” the group said on Twitter. “We know it sucks, as we were looking forward to seeing you all, but hold on to your tickets we’ll be announcing the new dates very soon.”
Facebook F8 developer conference
Facebook called off the “in-person component” of its annual F8 developer conference, the company’s biggest annual event, which typically brings thousands of software engineers to Silicon Valley. Facebook said it would replace the event with “locally hosted events, videos and live-streamed content.” This year’s shindig was slated to take place May 5 and 6.
Mobile World Congress
The MWC, the world’s largest technology trade show, typically attracts some 100,000 people from around the world to Barcelona every February. But the conference organizers called off this year’s event after high-profile attendees including Facebook and LG pulled out.
“The global concern regarding the coronavirus outbreak, travel concern and other circumstances, make it impossible for the GSMA to hold the event,” the organization said in a statement on February 12. The show has been an annual event since 2006.
Disney in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo
The Tokyo Disney resort said this week it would close until March 15 due to the coronavirus outbreak. Disney theme parks in Shanghai have been closed since January 24 and Hong Kong Disney attractions since January 25.
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