The world is on the brink of a full-blown pandemic as the deadly coronavirus sweeps across nearly every continent on the globe.
COVID-19 emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December before spreading to more than 45 counties over the last two months. The fallout has been devastating, with 2800 people dead and 82,000 infected worldwide.
As nations grapple with the illness - which so far has no vaccine and has killed more than 2003's infamous SARS virus - public services and cultural events are being closed down.
Here are some of the major closures and cancellations:
Culture and education
The spate of infections in Asia has led to widespread closures and cancellations of cultural events, tourism destinations, and businesses, especially in China and Japan.
China's extensive quarantine and containment measures appear to be having some effect, with the number of new cases slowly dropping. But many businesses, especially in centres close to Wuhan, continue not to operate. The likes of Apple and Starbucks closed their doors earlier this month, and while some individual stores have begun reopening, a lack of customer demand means they're working only limited hours.
Shanghai Disneyland is also closed "out of consideration for the health and safety of our guests and cast members," a statement on the theme park's website says.
In Japan, where there are more than 160 cases of the illness plus nearly 700 from a cruise ship docked in Yokohama, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has called for cultural events not to go ahead until around March 15. Among those impacted was the Japanese pop groups Perfume and Exile, which cancelled their concerts in Tokyo and Osaka. Many of the country's museums, including in Tokyo, Nara, Kyoto and Fukuoka also won't open until at least the middle of March.
Japan has also taken the drastic step of closing all schools across the nation. That is believed to impact about 13 million students and will last for about a month. China's schools are also shut, with 200 million students learning online.
Several schools in England have closed, despite advice from health authorities saying to stay open. One of them, Trinity Catholic College in Middlesbrough, will stay closed until March 3 to allow for a "specialist deep clean".
Educational exchanges from countries like the United States to China have been cancelled for the coming months, while many students from China are unable to travel overseas for university placements, including to New Zealand, which has imposed strict travel restrictions.
Museums in South Korea and Italy, which has see a rapid surge in cases to 650 on Friday, have also been closed, as has the Duomo Cathedral in Milan. The famous annual Venice Carnvial has been cut short. It was also announced earlier this week that film company Paramount was shutting down production of Mission: Impossible 7 in Venice for three weeks due to the coronavirus spread.
In an unprecedented move, Saudi Arabia has barred the entry of Muslim pilgrims wanting to worship in the cities of Mecca and Medina. Millions travel to the holy sites over the year, especially in the fasting month of Ramadan, which begins in late April. According to one travel association in Bangladesh, that sudden decision has left more than 1000 pilgrims stranded at Dhaka with non-refundable tickets.
Several cultural festivals in New Zealand, including the Auckland Lantern Festival, were given the red light. Place des Anges, an "outdoor aerial spectacle" which was to be performed at Auckland Domain between March 13 and 15 has been cancelled due to "major freight issues related to the coronvairus outbreak and the subsequent cancellation of air cargo flights worldwide".
Sport
The sporting world, espeically in Asia, has been sent into disarray because of the virus, as authorities warn against large gatherings of people. As a result, many sporting events have been cancelled or made to continue without a live audience.
At the start of February, the Chinese Basketball Association suspended play indefinitely, while the Chinese Grand Prix, scheduled for April 17, also postponed.
In Japan, the Yomiuri Giants baseball team will play its pre-season matches behind closed doors, the country's soccer and rugby leagues have delayed matches by weeks, while the Japan Sumo Association will meet on Sunday to decide about the future of its March Grand Sumo Tournament.
The spread of the illness in Japan is also having repercussions for Kiwi sporting fans. A Super Rugby match between the Crusaders and the Sunwolves meant to be played in Tokyo on March 14 will not go ahead in Japan.
Concern about the coronavirus surge in Italy means that the northern hemisphere's Six Nations rugby league has been impacted. Men's and women's Six Nations fixtures between Ireland and Italy have been postponed. Italy's football league has had games called off, while the famous Milano-Sanremo annual cycling race is in doubt.
Possibly the most concerning dilemma, however, is regarding the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. No decision has yet been made whether to postpone or cancel the global event, but organisers are receiving advice from the World Health Organisation. The International Olympic Committee says it is "fully committed" to holding the games in July through to August.
One member of the committee, however, says if it is too dangerous for the games to go ahead, they will likely be cancelled rather than postponed.
"You just don't postpone something on the size and scale of the Olympics. There's so many moving parts, so many countries and different seasons, and competitive seasons, and television seasons. You can't just say, 'We'll do it in October'," said Dick Pound.
Transport
One of the key ways nations are attempting to contain the spread of the virus is by imposing stringent travel regulations.
Among the many countries to introduce such rules is the United States, Australia and New Zealand. No one who has travelled from or through China is allowed to enter New Zealand, unless they are permanent residents, citizens or immediate family.
Changes to flight schedules aren't just impacting travellers, however. Many countries, including New Zealand, are having their export markets affected, with trade lines disrupted.
So far, the travel bans are only directed towards China, but there has been calls for that to be expanded to other nations fighting the virus, like South Korea, Japan and Italy. British Airways has cancelled some flights from London's Heathrow Airport to Italy and South Korea due to reduced customer demand, while Russia has suspended its Moscow to Nice train service.
Public transport has also been shut down across China.
