NCAA cancels March Madness because of coronavirus; states begin to close all schools

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, the wife of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has tested positive for the coronavirus.

In a statement released Thursday night, the prime minister’s office said she was tested at the advice of doctors after a trip to Britain. The test came back positive.

“She is feeling well, is taking all the recommended precautions and her symptoms remain mild,” the statement said.

The prime minister is not showing symptoms, according to his office, but he will self-isolate for 14 days. The statement included a personal message from Sophie Grégoire Trudeau.

Alaska, Maine and Wyoming announced their first positive tests for the novel coronavirus, as officials predict that the pandemic’s spread to all 50 U.S. states will come any day.

The latest case reported, a patient in Alaska, involves a foreign national who was traveling through Anchorage International Airport, state officials said. Authorities described the man as an “isolated case” who had contact with few people and sought treatment after noticing his symptoms.

“This is not a surprise,” Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) said, adding later, “We expect more positives.”

HONG KONG — Asian stocks plunged early Friday, with investors taking their cue from Wall Street after the Dow Jones industrial average suffered its worst day since 1987 on fears over the economic damage wrought by the coronavirus pandemic.

Japan’s Nikkei index slumped almost 10 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng benchmark retreated 6 percent, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 7.5 percent, adding to heavy losses this month.

While there are signs the outbreak is easing in Asia, especially in China, worries about the prolonged economic impact as the virus ravages the United States and Europe have led many economists to predict a global recession this year.

The Archdiocese of Washington is closing all Catholic schools in the District and its Maryland suburbs for two weeks and halting the public celebration of Mass until further notice.

Citing the emergency order by Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan banning public gatherings of 250 or more, Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory issued a dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass to the 655,000 Catholics in the diocese, which includes the District and Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, Prince George’s and St. Mary’s counties. He said weddings and funerals may still take place but attendance should be limited to immediate family.

LOS ANGELES — Before Adam Silver could announce to the public the National Basketball Association’s response to the coronavirus, which was to suspend the 2019-20 season, the league commissioner faced a more immediate challenge: communicating the severity of the growing pandemic to team owners, executives and players.

High-ranking executives from multiple teams generally praised Silver’s response to the spread of covid-19 across the country over the past two weeks, painting it proactive, thorough and timely. But those executives said in interviews that the league’s consensus plan, which was to play games without fans present, was initially met with skepticism and led to a divided conference call on Wednesday that concluded without a formal policy announcement.

Disney and Universal Studios are closing several theme parks through the end of the month as fears mount that large gatherings will help spread the novel coronavirus.

Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, Disneyland Paris Resort and two iconic Anaheim, Calif. attractions — Disneyland Park and Disneyland California Adventure — are all shutting down this weekend out of an “abundance of caution,” the Walt Disney Company announced Thursday. The properties had continued to draw enthusiastic crowds even as the coronavirus’s rising global toll stoked concern.

NEW YORK — Any jury trial set to start next week was postponed and naturalization ceremonies were canceled indefinitely as new measures to protect against the covid-19 pandemic went into effect in the Southern District of New York courthouses, an official confirmed.

A contract worker at the district’s bankruptcy court building tested positive for the virus and was working on the premises on March 3, according to district executive Edward Friedland. The building is being thoroughly cleaned, although increased sanitization was already underway before SDNY administrators learned of the worker’s novel coronavirus diagnosis on Thursday afternoon, Friedland said.

Kansas announced its first coronavirus patient death on Thursday evening, bringing the nationwide death count for the virus to 41 people.

The Kansas patient was a man in his 70s who lived in a long-term care facility and had underlying health conditions, Gov. Laura Kelly (D) said at a news conference. He was hospitalized.

Officials are tracing the man’s activities over the past two weeks, Kelly said, and quarantining anyone who had contact with him.

Kelly has declared a statewide emergency, saying the move will help her marshal resources to fight the virus.