Japan reports first death from new virus

TOKYO – Japan’s health ministry says a woman infected with the new virus has died, becoming the country’s first confirmed fatality.

Health minister Katsunobu Kato announced Thursday that the victim is a woman in her 80s who had been treated at a hospital near Tokyo since early February after developing symptoms. Her infection was confirmed after her death.

Japan has confirmed 247 cases of the virus, including 218 from a cruise ship quarantined at the port of Yokohama, near Tokyo, amid growing fears of the spreading virus.