The death toll stands at 3,220 out of the 94,249 COVID-19 cases recorded worldwide; this is an update posted by worldometer, a website hosted by the American Library Association as at March 04, 2020, 1325hours and obtained by the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Wednesday.

Currently, 39,827 patients have been infected, out of this figure 33,047 are in mild condition and 6,780 are in critical state.

On December 31, 2019, World Health Orgnisation (WHO) was alerted to several cases of pneumonia in Wuhan City, Hubei Province of China. The virus did not match any other known virus. "This raised concern because when a virus is new, we do not know how it affects people", WHO said.

According to WHO, it has been working with Chinese authorities and global experts from the day they were informed, to learn more about the virus, how it affected the people who were sick with it, how they could be treated, and what countries could respond.

Due to the fast widespread of the deadly disease, people especially Ghanaians were advised to adhere to the preventive measures put in place for their safety.

Preventive measures announced include regularly and thoroughly washing of hands with soap and water, use of alcohol-based hand sanitiser, maintaining at least one and half metres (5 feet) distance between oneself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.

People coughing persistently or sneezing should stay indoors or keep a social distance, but not mix with a crowd, adhere to good respiratory hygiene by covering mouths and noses with a handkerchief or tissue while sneezing or coughing.