Students from universities in the Washington area who are studying abroad in China have been told to return home amid the coronavirus outbreak that has left more than 100 people dead and thousands infected.
“I think there is a lot of uncertainty right now with how wide-reaching this virus is going to be,” Fei said by email. “Since so many have traveled for the Lunar New Year, I think it’s really difficult to predict how many have been affected or may become affected.”
AU is prohibiting travel to China, said university spokeswoman Kelly Alexander. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned travelers Monday to avoid nonessential trips to China, and Chinese authorities have imposed travel restrictions in the country.
“AU will be working with the students to assist them in arranging accommodation and registration in courses on campus,” Alexander said in an email.
Georgetown University issued a similar warning, said school spokeswoman Meghan Dubyak. Three students studying in Beijing have been asked to leave, and school officials have temporarily banned university-related travel to China.
“While there have been no reported cases with any connection to Georgetown, the university is taking proactive steps to ensure the safety and health of our community out of an abundance of caution, since there is still much about the situation that is unknown,” university officials said in a letter sent to faculty and students.
Coronaviruses belong to a family of viruses that can manifest in illnesses ranging from a garden-variety cold to more serious diseases. The novel coronavirus that authorities believe has emerged in China has caused an outbreak of respiratory illness around the world.
The University of Virginia has responded by advising students to leave their program at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China, and continue their studies remotely, said Brian Coy, a university spokesman. Virginia Tech leaders have told faculty and students to avoid traveling to the country.
“By the luck of the draw, and the way faculty scheduling and course scheduling worked out,” there are not any Virginia Tech students in China, said spokesman Mark Owczarski. But the ban on travel will prevent faculty from attending conferences or conducting research in China, Owczarski said.
Leaders at George Washington University are helping students in China return home. And GWU students who had planned to travel to China in the coming weeks are working with university staff to make other arrangements, said Crystal Nosal, a spokeswoman.
Howard University reported no students currently abroad in China.
At the University of Maryland’s flagship campus in College Park, officials have delayed or canceled programs in China.
Several potential coronavirus cases are under investigation in the United States. A George Mason University student is awaiting lab tests to determine whether the student has the virus, the university said in a statement.
Leaders of the school in Northern Virginia said the student does not live on campus and is isolated from others.
“At this time, the current risk to the public and the Mason community remains low, and the university has been advised that additional precautions are not necessary,” officials said. “The local health department is conducting an investigation and will contact anyone whom they suspect to be at risk of exposure and illness.”
The travel warnings come during a break for students in China — a break that coincides with Lunar New Year, one of China’s most significant holidays. AU students studying at Peking University in Beijing were scheduled to return to classes next week, but schools across the country have delayed the first week of classes because of the virus.
Students who traveled outside Beijing during the break were told they had to be quarantined in an on-campus hotel for two weeks before returning to classes, students said.
Olivia Emery, a 20-year-old AU student studying at Peking University, said the continued spread of the virus has limited her ability to travel. She did not leave Beijing during the break and said she had been “stuck in [her] off-campus apartment and the surrounding area for three days.”
“I am no longer allowed to attend my internship,” Emery said in an email. “I must bring hand sanitizer with me everywhere I go. Essentially, I live my life constantly fearing catching the virus.”
When she ventured onto campus Friday, she had to have her temperature taken before being granted access.
Fei, who has family in eastern China, said she is concerned about the people she and her peers will leave behind.
“My family in the States just bought over 10 [respiratory] masks to send to my family in China because they are pretty much impossible to find here now,” Fei said. “The whole situation is incredibly heartbreaking.”