Over 1 Million People Have Been Infected With COVID-19 Worldwide According to Johns Hopkins University, <br />as of Friday, more than 1,033,000 people <br />have been infected with the virus. The U.S. has the most reported cases, <br />with nearly a quarter of a million infections. Nearly 55,000 deaths <br />have resulted from the pandemic. The global economy is likely <br />to shrink by 2 percent in the <br />first six months of 2020. The U.S. jobless rate in the <br />second quarter could <br />exceed 30 percent. The virus is reported <br />to have been first detected in a <br />human on Dec. 1 in Wuhan, China. On Dec. 30, test results showing <br />a SARS-like virus were posted on <br />social media by the head of the <br />Central Hospital ER department in Wuhan. Around the same time, <br />China's state media reported on <br />a mysterious pneumonia in the region. Neighboring cities hit hard by <br />SARS began fever screenings by Jan. 3. Shanghai scientists completed <br />the sequencing of the entire genome <br />of the new coronavirus on Jan. 11. Thailand confirmed its <br />first case two days later. In the <br />subsequent days, cases emerged in <br />several countries and in other major cities of China. Wuhan was placed on lockdown on Jan. 23. <br />Within days, 60 million people were in quarantine. By mid-Feb., the epicenter of <br />the virus had shifted to Europe. <br />Major cities in Italy's tourist region <br />were shut down beginning Feb. 22. In the U.S., the first known <br />death caused by COVID-19<br />occurred on Feb. 29. Two days after the World Health Organization <br />declared the coronavirus a pandemic on March 11, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency. Though much of the country is on lockdown, <br />the U.S. has emerged as the new epicenter of the virus. Experts warn that the virus <br />will hit in waves, similarly to <br />the flu pandemic of 1918.
