"The Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) is monitoring all passengers arriving at the airport from at-risk areas and identifying those who might need to undergo health inspection. Information on the symptoms of the coronavirus COVID-19 is also provided at both airport and seaport, so that people might recognize them and know what to do when they appear."

"For instance, ahead of the arrival of a plane from Italy, we would ask a carrier whether or not any individuals manifesting virus symptoms had boarded the plane, with PPA officials ready to hand out protective masks to reduce contagion risk," interior minister Mart Helme said.

Helme, who said there was no call for panic, according to BNS, added that an ambulance would be called to the airport in the event of those carrying the virus entering the country.

"The coronavirus has not caused an emergency in Estonia, and we will do all in our power to prevent one," he said.

As reported on ERR News, two thermal imaging cameras are to be installed at Tallinn Airport next week which will be used to scan passengers arriving from regions at risk of coronavirus - an estimated total of 600-700 people per day.

The Ministry of the Interior recommends following guidelines on the Health Board (Terviseamet) website, and calling the family physician hotline on 1220, or +372 634 6630, in case of health concerns.

Commonly referred to as the novel coronavirus, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by the virus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). COVID-19 was first identified in Wuhan, the capital of China's Hubei Province, in late 2019. Worldwide, more than 83,000 cases of coronavirus disease have since been confirmed, with more than 2,800 deaths attributed to the disease to date.

Estonia's first confirmed case was reported early on Thursday morning. The individual affected, a 34-year-old man who had flown from Istanbul to Riga and then by bus from Riga to Tallinn, is currently in an isolation ward in a Tallinn hospital.

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