World Views

CHINESE officials say dry conditions, high temperatures and a sudden change in wind direction all contributed to the deaths of 19 people in a forest fire in mountainous southwestern China. Thousands of firefighters were still battling the blaze near the city of Xichng in Sichuan province. Another three people were in stable condition after going missing early Monday with the 18 firefighters and their guide whose bodies were later found.

NEPAL Stranded tourists from Australia and New Zealand have boarded a chartered flight out of Nepal. The Nepal Airlines flight had 222 Australians and 28 New Zealand nationals and permanent residents aboard and is scheduled to arrive in Brisbane today. Passengers will face a 14-day quarantine upon arrival. Nepal’s government has imposed a lockdown until April 7 halting flights, ordering vehicles off the roads, shutting down businesses and shuttering major markets.

PHILIPPINES Police have arrested 21 slum dwellers who were demanding government food aid for staging an “unauthorized protest” during the lockdown to fight the coronavirus. Those arrested in suburban Quezon City included six women. Police Brig. Gen. Ronnie Montejo said they will face criminal charges of violating a new law that requires millions of people to stay home under quarantine. The residents ignored an appeal by the police to return home.

COVID-19 Some pregnant women fear giving birth with no loved ones by their side. Others worry about getting sick with Covid-19 and not being able to hold their newborns. The coronavirus pandemic has injected anxiety and uncertainty to an already stressful time and while science about risks is mostly reassuring, doctors want clearer answers too.

US The captain of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier facing a growing outbreak of the coronavirus is asking for permission to isolate the bulk of his roughly 5,000 crew members on shore, which would take the warship out of duty in an effort to save lives. In a memo to Navy leaders, the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt said that the spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating and that removing all but 10% of the crew is a “necessary risk” in order to stop the spread of the virus. The ship is docked in Guam.

EUROPE Facing intense surges in the need for hospital ICU beds, European nations are on a building and hiring spree, throwing together makeshift hospitals and shipping coronavirus patients out of overwhelmed cities via high-speed trains and military jets. The key question is whether they will be able to find enough healthy medical staff to make it all work.

HUNGARY’s government wants to strip autonomy from mayors across the country by tying their decisions to approval by appointed administrators. The proposal is part of an extensive draft bill on changes in public administration. It came a day after Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government gained powers to rule during the coronavirus crisis.

UK Prince Charles has applauded the work of charities helping the elderly during the new coronavirus outbreak. His video remarks on royal social media accounts are the prince’s first appearance since he self-isolated after contracting the virus. The video was made at Birkhall, the prince’s home in Scotland.