For Manon Trudel, holding onto her smile is going to be important, considering the road ahead.

The coronavirus, which originated in China, is having an impact on Edmonton field trips scheduled for Japan and Europe.

The officials said Japanese health authorities faced tough challenges in dealing with a foreign-operated ship that required international negotiations in the absence of established rules in such a crisis.

South Korea has the third-highest national total behind China and Japan, and cases have rapidly increased in Italy and Iran in just a few days.

"If you haven't gone through this, it's too hard to explain. It's been a very emotional, frustrating situation. Scary."

Organizers are not considering cancelling the Tokyo Summer Games, but Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his party are being criticized for their handling of the outbreak.

A Fredericton couple are eager to come back to Canada after their ordeal on board the Diamond Princess.

While foreign travelers leaving the ship face more quarantine at home, Japanese do not -- a situation that has stoked concerns about Japan's quarantine practices.

The base in Trenton has housed Canadians who were airlifted from Wuhan, the city in China where the virus was first detected.

The two victims, who were both elderly passengers on the cruise ship, become the first fatalities from the vessel. Japan now has three deaths linked to the COVID-19 illness.