Florida reports 2 deaths related to coronavirus, total count rises to 17 in US

The Florida Department of Health Friday night confirmed the death of two patients who had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Both the deceased -- one of whom was in their 70s -- had recently returned from international trips to undisclosed locations. One was in Santa Rosa County while the other in Lee County, CNN reported.

The Health Department also announced two new presumptive positive cases of the coronavirus in Broward County.

This brings the US death toll to 17. These are the first US deaths outside the states of California and Washington.

The deadly virus has spread throughout the world since the first cases were detected in central China in December. Globally, more than 101,000 people have been diagnosed with the disease, according to Johns Hopkins University - with at least 3,070 deaths in China and at least 267 fatalities in other parts of the globe, most of them in Italy and Iran.

In South Korea, authorities reported 483 new cases of infections on Saturday, bringing the total close to 7,000, according to Yonhap news agency.

Meanwhile, China's National Health Commission reported on Saturday at least 28 new coronavirus deaths as of the end of Friday, bringing to 3,070 the death toll nationwide.

A second patient in England who tested positive for coronavirus has died, the United Kingdom's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty confirmed. The patient was being treated at Milton Keynes University Hospital and had underlying health conditions.