STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State University is urging its students to be cautious when traveling to Asian countries. The university sent out an advisory to students warning them about the deadly coronavirus outbreak in China.
"The coronavirus has sort of burst onto the scene in the last few weeks from an outbreak based in Wuhan. It is a virus that is related to other viruses we've seen in the past, so we have heard about SARS and MERS," said Dr. Elizabeth McGraw, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics.
So far, there have only been five confirmed cases in the United States and none in the state of Pennsylvania.
Hundreds of Chinese international students attend Penn State University. It is unknown how many of them are from the Wuhan area, but researchers say that it may not be an issue.
The university says several Chinese international students went home over winter break, but luckily, that break ended before the coronavirus outbreak began in China.
"I think that we are very lucky that the outbreak is really just coming into its peak recently. Most of our foreign students have come back already for the holidays, so it is a good thing that this didn't happen back before Christmas, but I know our Penn State health personnel are watching our students and looking for symptoms," McGraw said.
Ryan Lam is a Chinese student from Hong Kong. He says he constantly worries about his family members and friends back home in mainland China.
"There are a few cases of the virus springing up here and there from where I am from in Hong Kong, especially in my district, there is one case, so my family and the people I know are, of course, worried," said Lam.
The deadly virus has already spread to several Asian countries. Many Asian students on Penn State's campus can be seen wearing surgical masks, but this doesn't mean they are sick.
"Mostly it's just being cautious because we have been through stuff like SARS and the avian flu and stuff like that. It's a big thing in Southeast Asia, and especially parts of China as well, so it's just them being cautious," Lam added.