LA Battles Coronavirus Hoax As Outbreak Declared World Emergency

LOS ANGELES, CA — As the World Health Organization declared the deadly new coronavirus a global health emergency, authorities in Los Angeles continued to battle coronavirus hoaxes and false reports.

Police and health authorities in Los Angeles Tuesday were forced to refute a fake public health alert circulating on social media falsely claiming "a possible coronavirus outbreak" in Carson. Their efforts mirrored those of USC officials who worked to combat false rumors of a campus exposure the day before.

"There is NO current threat to public health from the Coronavirus in Los Angeles County," says Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn.

The letter circulating Thursday, which is purporting to be from an official with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, contains false information and has been determined to be a hoax, according to Carson Sheriff's Station Public Information Officer Jennifer Atenza.

The Carson Sheriff's Station became aware of the letter being shared on Facebook and through emails Wednesday, and contacted Public Health officials, who confirmed it was fake, Atenza told City News Service.

Public Health officials warned the public to beware of the false information and to visit PublicHealth.LACounty.gov for accurate and verified information.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and the sheriff's department posted a warning on Twitter Thursday evening about false alerts related to the Coronavirus. Genuine updates on the virus will be posted at publichealth.lacounty.gov and on Twitter at @lapublichealth.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.