An elderly man in the northern city of Padua has died after being infected with the coronavirus, becoming the first Italian victim of the disease, Health Minister Roberto Speranza said on Friday.
None of those infected were believed to have travelled to China, the epicentre of the new illness, and local authorities in Italy scrambled to contain the outbreak.
Local media said the dead man was a 78-year-old from the small town of Vo’ Euganeo who was hospitalised two weeks ago.
“We had prepared a plan in recent days, because it was clear what has happened could somehow happen,” Health Minister Speranza told reporters as doctors tested hundreds of people who might have come into contact with the coronavirus sufferers.
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