The number of coronavirus cases globally topped 200,000 Wednesday, as people in the United States and in countries across the world adjusted to life under lockdowns and isolation.
The concern about the economic consequences of the pandemic spurred another widespread decline in stock prices, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing down over 1,300 points on Wednesday. Many major stock indexes around the world were down more than 4 percent.
According to Johns Hopkins University, there are currently more than 201,000 confirmed cases and 8,000 deaths related to the coronavirus around the world.
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Guard and inmate at Rikers Island jail in New York City test positive
A guard and inmate at New York City's Rikers Island jail have tested positive for coronavirus, a union representing corrections officers said Wednesday.
Michael Skelly, spokesman for the New York City Corrections Officers' Benevolent Association, told NBC News that his members believe this is just the start of "what we fear to be more."
The union is demanding the city order special masks and more gloves and hand sanitizer. Union president Elias Husamudeen spoke to the quarantined corrections officer on Wednesday and said they're "doing pretty OK given the circumstances," according to Skelly.
A representative for the city's Department of Corrections could not be immediately reached for comment.
U.S. prisons not prepared for coronavirus crisis, experts warn
March 18, 202005:13Photo: Festival cancelled, but blossoms still on
Two federal prison staffers test positive for coronavirus
There are no known cases of coronavirus among the 175,000 inmates currently in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, according to a BOP spokesperson, but two staffers had tested positive as of Wednesday.
The spokesperson did not say whether the infected staffers worked directly with inmates.
BOP has already suspended all inmate transfers from facility to facility for 30 days.
The agency employs more than 35,000 staff at correctional facilities and agency offices across the country.
Celebrities turn to social media to entertain fans
Celebrities take to social media to be voices in reason in COVID-19 pandemic
March 18, 202002:38For many celebrities, the show must go one, pandemic or not.
Famous faces, including singers Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Justin Bieber, John Legend and his wife, model Chrissy Teigen, rapper Cardi B, actor Hilary Duff and others have flocked to Instagram Live to entertain fans while they isolate themselves from crowds amid the outbreak.
Performers like Legend, Coldplay's Chris Martin and Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard have even used the hashtag #TogetherAtHome to promote their streams meant to entertain millions stuck at home.
Italy's health care system at a breaking point
Northern Italy has one of the best public health systems in the Western world, but the coronavirus pandemic is pushing to the breaking point.
“I have never seen so many people die together before my eyes,” said a nurse from one of the main hospitals in Bergamo, a city in northern Italy that is at the center of the worst outbreak in Europe. “It feels like we are crossing in the middle of a battlefield.”
More than 2,500 people have died in about four weeks in Italy, and cities in country’s northern Lombardy region are among the hardest hit. With over 31,500 confirmed cases, the country’s doctors and nurses are struggling to keep up. They’re running out of beds, equipment and even people, particularly as more health care workers catch the virus.
Missouri and Connecticut announce first coronavirus deaths
Missouri and Connecticut each announced their first coronavirus deaths on Wednesday.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said the patient who died in his state had tested positive in a travel related case. As of Wednesday afternoon, Missouri had 16 confirmed cases of coronavirus.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said the patient who died in his state was a man in his 80s who was in an assisted living facility. As of Wednesday afternoon, Connecticut had 96 confirmed cases of coronavirus.
Photo: Marquee message in Beverly Hills
GM, Ford and Fiat Chrysler are shuttering all North American plants
The big three auto manufacturers in the U.S. — General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler — all announced Wednesday they will systematically shut down all manufacturing plants in order to deep clean facilities in the fight against coronavirus.
“GM and the UAW have always put the health and safety of the people entering GM plants first, and we have agreed to a systematic, orderly suspension of production to aid in fighting COVID-19/coronavirus,” GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra said in a statement.
The United Auto Workers President Rory Gamble said the union backs this move: "This will give us time to review best practices and to prevent the spread of this disease."
GM, which produces cars under the names Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac, said "the suspension will last until at least March 30."
Ford and Fiat Chrysler are also bringing their operations to a halt in North America, the companies said Wednesday.
Salt Lake City earthquake hampers coronavirus efforts in Utah
A 5.7-magnitude earthquake shook Salt Lake City, Utah, early Wednesday morning, knocking out power to tens of thousands of households and businesses, shuttering the area's airport, and disrupting some government efforts to respond to the coronavirus pandemic.
Coronavirus testing came to a stop, and the state's coronavirus hotline was not operational following the quake, Department of Health spokeswoman Jenny Johnson told NBC News. The personnel working the 24/7 hotline during the quake were upset by the quake, and some who were "not in a good headspace" were sent home, she said.
Coronavirus update posts on the health department's website would also likely be delayed, Johnson said.
New York Stock Exchange temporarily closes trading floor
The New York Stock Exchange will close its trading floor and temporarily move to all electronic trading, NYSE President Stacey Cunningham announced Wednesday.
The main equities trading floor will shut down at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday for sanitization after a participant tested reportedly positive for the coronavirus.
“NYSE’s trading floors provide unique value to issuers and investors, but our markets are fully capable of operating in an all-electronic fashion to serve all participants, and we will proceed in that manner until we can re-open our trading floors to our members,” Cunningham said.
“While we are taking the precautionary step of closing the trading floors, we continue to firmly believe the markets should remain open and accessible to investors."
All-electronic trading will begin on Monday.
10 more dead in and around Seattle
At least 10 more people who had tested positive for coronavirus in and around Seattle have died, bringing that local death toll to 56, authorities said Wednesday.
Seattle & King County Public Health also reported 44 new cases on Wednesday, spiking the area's total count to 562.
Meanwhile in nearby Pierce County, that jurisdiction reported its first coronavirus death, a woman from Puyallup in her 50s, the county health department said.