An animated map tracks the spread of the coronavirus as cases were reported in more than 145 countries

Eloisa Lopez/Reuters

The coronavirus has spread to more than 150 countries since it was first identified in Wuhan, China at the end of last year. 

The Chinese government shut down the city of Wuhan and many others in the Hubei province in late January, but cases had already been exported to other regions of China as well as other countries.

This animated map shows which countries confirmed coronavirus patients, and when, after China reported its first case.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic due to its rapid and sustained global spread and the severity of the disease on March 11. As the number of new cases of COVID-19 — the disease that the new coronavirus causes — has slowed in China, outbreaks in other countries have grown.

More people outside of China have now caught the coronavirus than inside.

On the morning of January 20, the virus had spread to four countries: China, Japan, South Korea, and Thailand. The US reported its first case later that day.

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By February 15, 28 countries had reported cases of COVID-19, and the epidemic’s death toll had surpassed that of the 2002-2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic. 

Ruobing Su/Business Insider

By March, more countries had cases of the disease than ones that didn’t. Italy announced that all 60 million residents would be placed under lockdown on March 9, and by the following day, cases of the virus were reported in 109 countries. That includes Afghanistan, Colombia, Jordan, Mexico, and the Vatican.

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As of Tuesday, more than 197,000 coronavirus cases have been reported worldwide, and at least 7,900 people have died in total. Italy has the highest number of cases and deaths outside of China: more than 31,000 people have gotten sick there, and 2,500 have died.

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