The recent Coronavirus outbreak has been a looming threat across the world, especially in areas of Southeast Asia where the viral outbreak first began to spread. As a result, events and gatherings happening in high risk areas, including eSports events like Overwatch League, have been postponed, moved and canceled to limit the spread of the virus.
Doctors in affected areas have quickly responded to the outbreak, treating patients and developing new treatments and vaccines to limit the outbreak moving forward. One such doctor, a famous Street Fighter cosplayer by the name of Yuan Herong who lives in Shandong Province, China, known for her cosplay of characters like Chun-Li, has taken to social media to raise awareness for the viral outbreak and to express that it is her duty to help those afflicted.
Herong has earned a following as a bodybuilder and Chun-Li cosplayer who tends to create costumes for powerful female characters and show a different physical representation of these fighters. However, according to a recent Instagram post, above being a cosplayer or bodybuilder, Herong is a doctor, and as such feels that it is her duty to be "on the front lines" of the fight against Coronavirus. This of course does come with its own risks for the doctors treating infected patients, and so choosing to step up and help any patients she can does put Herong in danger of contracting the virus.
The courage of these doctors that are willing to work with Coronavirus shouldn't be ignored, as thousands of people have already been diagnosed with the virus. Likewise, seeing as how the virus can only spread through social interactions, plenty of worried citizens in affected areas are choosing to safely avoid contact with others. Even more events have been canceled and postponed as well, as worries of global gatherings accelerating the spread of the virus has led to precautionary measures taking place to limit exposure.
It should be noted that at this time, the virus has spread outside of mainland China, although outbreaks have been minimal in other affected locations. A vaccine is also currently being researched and government organizations like the CDC have been working around the clock to limit and eventually stop the spread of the virus. Additionally, while it is tempting to make comparisons to fantastic illnesses, like Resident Evil's T-Virus, the truth is that this is a serious risk, and those in or traveling to affected areas should show caution to prevent further spread.
Source: Kotaku