Latest studies out show that each person infected with the novel coronavirus will pass the disease on to between two and three other people on average.
This makes containing the novel coronavirus difficult.
According to Reuters, control measures would be vital in determining whether the virus outbreak will continue to spread at this rate.
However, the scientists who conducted the studies said that in order to successfully contain the epidemic, control measures would have to halt the transmission of the disease in at least 60 per cent of cases.
Wuhan may face 190,000 infected cases if crisis unabated
An infectious disease specialist at Imperial College London told Reuters that it is unclear whether the outbreak could be contained within China, given that on average, each case was infecting two to three others.
A second group of researchers from the Lancaster University, also based in the U.K., said that on average, each infected person would pass the disease on to 2.5 new people.
The scientists predicted that if the epidemic, which originated in Wuhan, remained unabated, the Chinese city could face 190,000 cases of infection by Feb. 04.
They also warned that "infection will be established in other Chinese cities, and importations to other countries will become more frequent".
Countries worldwide taking measures against outbreak
In an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, the Ministry of National Development (MND) is preparing several chalets to serve as quarantine centres, for people who are not ill, but may have been exposed to the disease.
On Jan. 25, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced that Hong Kong will stop all flights and high-speed trains between Wuhan and Hong Kong.
She also announced that Hong Kong's response level will be raised to "emergency", which is the highest tier of response.
In an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, Beijing has suspended its inter-province bus services, effective from Sunday, Jan. 26.
In Malaysia, some 207,000 people have signed an online petition to urge the Malaysian government to ban Chinese nationals from entering the country.
The man who started the petition, Muhammad Zaim Yusran Mohd Zaidy, said that the government should take preventive measures to safeguard the health of Malaysians, and that they should not wait until a death has occurred.
The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak has risen to at least 56, as the number of confirmed infections reached 1,975 as of Jan. 26.
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