UK coronavirus cases double to eight, government declares 'imminent threat'

FILE PHOTO: A woman wearing a mask is seen in Newcastle, Britain January 31, 2020. REUTERS/Lee Smith

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain said on Monday the number of confirmed coronavirus cases had doubled to eight as the government declared the virus a serious and imminent threat, giving it additional powers to isolate those suspected of being infected.

Alarm over the coronavirus that emerged in Wuhan, China, in December is driven by its rapid spread and the fact that infectious disease experts cannot yet know how deadly or contagious it is.