Coronavirus concerns prompt Winnipegger originally from Wuhan to cancel trip home for Lunar New Year

A Winnipeg entrepreneurwon't be home in China for the LunarNew Year, aftercancelling his travel plans at the last minutefollowing the outbreak of a new coronavirus in his hometown.

Xiaoyu Zhou is originally from the city of Wuhan where theoutbreak of the new virus began and was on his way there to visit his parents for Chinese New Year, butcancelled his plans on Tuesday, hetold CBC Radio'sUp To Speedhost Nadia Kidwai.

"It's not a good time to go back to home right now, and my parents encouraged me to not go home at this point," he said on Wednesday.

On Dec. 31, a cluster of cases of pneumonia was reported in the city of Wuhan. Thecause wasconfirmed as a new coronavirus a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. The Wuhan coronavirushadnot previously been identified in humans, according to Health Canada.

The death toll from the new respiratoryvirushas risen to 17, Chinese state television reported on Wednesday.The total number of confirmed cases had climbed to 544 as of Wednesday, according to the Communist Party's Peoples Daily newspaper.

The United States announced Tuesday it confirmed its first case of the coronavirus. There have been no confirmed cases in Canada so far.

The Public Health Agency of Canadasays the risk to Canadians visiting Wuhan is low, buthas updated its travel advisory, urging Canadians to take precautionssuch as avoiding large crowds.

Zhou said his family has told him that most members of the general public in Wuhan, including his family, are trying to avoid being out and about as much as they can.

However, he saidhis parents are doing fine right now, and the situation in Wuhan does not appear to beas terrifying as news headlines might make one believe.

"[People in Wuhan] are actually pretty OK," he said.If people have to go out, they are being advised to wear a mask around their mouth and to avoid close contact with people, he said.

Meanwhile, as health officials try to get the outbreakunder control, some public events for the Lunar New Year have been cancelled, Zhou said.

He saidpeople are understanding about it and will celebrate at home instead.