ATLANTA — As the world watches the spread of a new and deadly virus, rumors of the illness being spotted locally are cropping up by the day.
In the last few weeks, claims have spread online that the illness - a form of coronavirus known as COVID-19 - have been spotted in Rome, Georgia, at Dobbins Air Reserve Base and even at Children's Healtcare of Atlanta facilities. But, in many of those cases, the claims are not true.
11Alive has already debunked the claim that this strain of coronavirus was found in Rome. We are verifying some of the other claims.
Claim No.1: 30 Cases of Coronavirus at Dobbins
A second claim says that there are 30 cases of coronavirus at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta.
11Alive reached out to the department of Public Health, who said that there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Georgia at this time. It's also important to note that, so far, there are only 15 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the entire United States.
RELATED: Health officials: About 200 people in Georgia are 'self-monitoring' for coronavirus symptoms
There are, however, some military bases being used across the nation as quarantine facilities for US citizens being evacuated from China, where the COVID-19 virus first emerged.
Dobbins was listed as a possible military instillation that could be used for coronavirus quarantine, if additional space was needed, should other facilities become filled.
Claim No.2: Coronavirus at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta
A post in a Facebook group outlines how a child tested positive for coronavirus.
11Alive's Joe Henke spoke to the person who originally posted the comment in the group, who confirmed that her child was indeed getting treatment for a form of coronavirus, but that it is NOT the new strain of the virus - COVID-19 - that is causing panic worldwide.
The parent said that their child's doctors told her that the form of coronavirus that the child has is one of the strains commonly seen among children and has symptoms more similar to a common cold. It's also easily treatable.
But as far as COVID-19 being seen at Children's in Atlanta - that claim is not true.
Below is a statement from Children's Hospital:
The coronavirus currently receiving heightened media attention and first detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China is the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). This novel coronavirus is not the same strain as the multiple strains that have been circulating in the human population for years.
While it is not uncommon for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta to treat patients with coronavirus infections, we are not currently caring for any children with the novel coronavirus COVID-19. Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that commonly affect animals and can infect humans as well. Some types of coronavirus infections result in mild symptoms similar to the common cold, while others, like SARS or MERS, are associated with more severe symptoms.
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