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UPDATE: CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK

Over the last three weeks, an outbreak of coronavirus that was first reported in the area of Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China has escalated into a topic of international concern.

INFORMATION ACCURATE AS OF 29TH JAN 2020 0930 GMT

We would encourage our clients to familiarise themselves with the reference points we have prepared below. As the situation continues to evolve at pace, the importance of building up to date information into any decisions you make cannot be underestimated.

The S-RM team remain available to you should you wish to explore in greater detail how the outbreak might impact your business or evaluate the extent of your preparedness.   

Current state 

  • Coronavirus causes a pneumonia-like illness.
  • There are known to be at least 6,097 confirmed cases (increased from 4,525 in last 24 hours) of the coronavirus worldwide, with 132 deaths (increased from 106 over same period) reported.
  • At least 74 cases have been confirmed outside China; there have been no deaths outside China.
  • There are reports of cases appearing in Australia, (Cambodia), Canada, France, (Germany), Japan, (Macau), Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, South Korea, (Sri Lanka), Taiwan, Thailand, (United Arab Emirates), United States and Vietnam in travellers who had visited China. (Countries added 28/29th Jan in brackets).
  • Germany has reported the first case of human transmission of the virus in Europe.
  • An interactive map of the spread of the virus has been created by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University

Travel advice

  • Both the UK and US Governments advise against all travel to Hubei Province. In both cases these are the highest level travel advisories that can be given:
  • We encourage you to check these pages regularly for updated advice.
  • Reflecting an increasing level of concern, Chinese authorities have placed an extended travel lockdown on at least 17 cities around the centre of the outbreak, covering approximately 50 million residents.
  • On 29 November, British Airways suspended all flights to and from mainland China. If you are travelling to China, we advise you to check in regularly with your airline for updates on flight status.

Response from (non-Chinese) public health authorities

Advice for businesses

  • Whilst coronavirus is not classified as a pandemic, the principle of prudent forward planning suggests that if your business has an international footprint in any of the locations currently affected, or supply chain nodes in any of the locations affected, you should now be in active planning mode. Things to consider:
    • Establish a coordinating group to monitor the situation and manage within the business. This could be some or all of your existing crisis and/or business continuity team.
    • Agree the cadence for and means by which this group will convene.
    • Refamiliarise yourself with your crisis management and communications procedures.
    • Agree in advance who and how liaison with emergency services will be managed, if needed.
    • Identify your key sources of information. Ensure any information you rely upon is accurate and verified.
    • Establish where, geographically, elements of your business could come into contact with the virus.
    • Consider under what circumstances you would amend business operations in these locations, and what these amendments might look like.
    • Consider how working in areas where cases have been reported might affect employees’ willingness to work, particularly if their role includes a high level of contact with members of the public (for example, retail, leisure, food and drink).
    • Keep communications with your workforce clear and simple. Avoid sharing assumptions and ensure any information you share is grounded in independently verified facts. Make it clear to whom and how employees should raise concerns.
  • You should update your travel policy to ensure employees, contractors and clients are not placed at unacceptable risk.
  • Businesses, particularly those with large international footprints and/or supply chains in or near the affected regions should be reviewing any existing pandemic plans in preparation for the possibility that events escalate.
    • In the event that your plans are not up to date, consider whether you made plans for previous outbreaks like 2009 H1N1.
    • Many of the principles in these plans will stand true today, although you should consider at length the extent to which your current business reflects the business for which these plans were developed 10 years ago.
  • The following information may be useful in guiding your discussions. Remember to consider it within the current context of the outbreak:

Useful information in the press

For more information please reach out to Chris White, Director of Operations, Crisis Management. 

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