In pictures: New York shoppers stock up over coronavirus fears

Dry foods, rubbing alcohol, hand sanitizer, toilet paper and medicine sold out

A shopper picks up a can of tomatoes from a nearly empty shelf at a Whole Foods grocery store in New York City. (Photo by Alex Fang)

MARRIAN ZHOU and ALEX FANG, Nikkei staff writers

March 3, 2020 09:05 JST

NEW YORK -- Shoppers in the U.S. have hit local stores such as Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods and Duane Reade this past weekend to stock up on nonperishable foods and household supplies as fears rise that the new-coronavirus outbreak will go national.

After Washington state on Saturday announced the first confirmed U.S. death from COVID-19, five more patients in the state had died as of Monday evening. New York state on Sunday also announced its first confirmed case: a Manhattan woman who contracted the disease while traveling in Iran.