this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk, on pbs in america or around the globe. i'm lewis—vaughan jones. our top stories: the us navy sails into virus—stricken new york city, as donald trump says americans must social distance to save a million lives. this is our shared patriotic duty. challenging times are ahead for the next 30 days, and this is a very vital 30 days. syria reports its first deaths. we'll talk to an aid worker who fears a disaster is about to unfold. a national exodus. hundreds of thousands of migrant workers flee india's cities, after lockdowns leave them withoutjobs or pay. with hospitals around the world desperate for ventilators,

a new device offers hope for ha rd—pressed health services. we start in the us where the death toll has passed 3,000 and over 163,000 confirmed cases, the higest in the world. the grim news emerged after new york governor andrew cuomo warned the rest of the country could face what new york is currently going through. meanwhile president trump has said the next 30 days could be crucial and praised the efforts of american companies to produce more much—needed equipment, like masks and ventilators. 0ver1 million americans have now been tested, more than any other country, by far, not even close. the same modelling also shows that by very vigorously following these guidelines we could save more than 1 million american lives.

think of that. 1 million american lives. with more analysis on president trump's words, here's our north america correspondent, peter bowes. well, donald trump has clearly backed down from his aspiration that easter could be a turning point as far as america dealing with coronavirus. in fact he has said that could be the peak time for the number of deaths this country. the time during which americans will have to stay at home has been extended to the end of april and the president describing the next 30 days as vital in that fight to try to get control of the situation. also revealing that a million americans have now been tested, which he described as an historic landmark. in fact he claimed it was the most tests carried out by any country. that aside, we still have health workers, especially

in new york city, saying that they are on the edge, it's proving to be difficult to deal with the situation. they still don't have enough supplies, especially ventilators, and the governor of new york, andrew cuomo, appealing to health workers in other parts of the country that are not as badly affected as new york city to actually go there and to help, such is the problem, such is the level of exhaustion felt by so many people in new york city trying to deal with this. 0ne morale booster in the last 2a hours has been the arrival of a us navy ship, comfort, in new york. it has docked in manhattan and it has a thousand beds, several operating theatres. it will care for non—coronavirus patients, relieving the stress, to some extent, on those hospitals onshore. peter bowes there.

two deaths have now been recorded in syria. earlier the health ministry confirmed a woman died from the coronavirus disease on sunday after being taken to hospital. several other people have tested positive but medics suspect there are many more. zaher sahloul is a critical care specialist at christ advocate medical center in chicago, and also the president of the humanitarian organisation medglobal. he has recently returned from idlib and gave us a sense of the situation there. two months ago there was a huge displacement population in idlib, about 950,000 people, civilians, who were displaced because of the bombing by the assad regime and the russians, which also targeted 67 hospitals that were bombed and went out of service. so in idlib province you have 3.5 million people, half of them are displaced, 1.2 million of them live in tents, in camps, and only a0 hospitals remain in service. there's only 95 ventilators for

the whole province of idlib. actually, my hospital here in chicago has double than number of ventilators than the whole province of idlib that is serving 3.5 million. the situation could be catastrophic. that's really stark, isn't it, the way you put that into contrast, and catastrophic is probably accurate. you've got so many people in such confined spaces, social distancing, things like that, you can't get anywhere near that. definitely. it's impossible for people who live in camps to have access to even soap and water to wash their hands. social distancing is impossible when you are living in a tent and you have 15 members of your family in the same tent. if you got sick, if, god forbid, and we have coronavirus in idlib, so far there are no reported cases, although there are rumours that there are some, if the coronavirus is spreading to idlib it would be beyond catastrophe.

as i mentioned, there's enough icus. most people do not have access to healthca re and many of the hospitals have been bombed and destroyed. you already have a shortage of physicians and nurses to start with in that area of the world, which is completely locked from the rest of the world. so a potentially devastating cocktail of factors in place in syria. as you've said, we've had no reported cases so far, is that a surprise to you? it is a surprise, but there is no testing in idlib, so all of these patients who are suspected, the samples are sent to turkey. luckily, so far, there's no confirmed cases, but that doesn't mean there's no cases. in the rest of syria we have ten confirmed cases and two deaths. the problem in syria is the government, the syrian regime, was too late in doing

any meaningful guidelines or enforcement of social distancing and disinfection and so forth, they allowed many people from the rest of the world, especially from iran, to come to syria, there are many iranian fighters in syria and there are also religious terrorists who came from iran who came to syria in the few weeks before this crisis, which makes me think, and many people think, that there are thousands of cases in syria that are not declared. and this is also not unique to the syrian regime. they have always had this policy of lack of transparency and hiding things. and so if the numbers to start to increase, we do get reports of them, it is spreading throughout the country, what kind of help, what kind of support would be needed there? the most important thing, from my perspective, i mean, i live in chicago, my hospital has 150 patients with covid and we are doubling the numbers every day, our main concern is ppes, masks for the doctors, gowns, eye shields. the same thing in syria. because you have less doctors there. so if you have few doctors and nurses and they got

infected in idlib it would be a catastrophe. that would mean they would not be able to take care of patients. so ppe for doctors and nurses, personal protective equipment, of course more ventilators, more icu, medications, to take care of the patients who are critically ill. half of them are dying in the united kingdom, so imagine what would be the death rate in the icu in idlib, where you have very minimal resources. spain has overtaken china in the number of infections with more than 85,000 cases. only the united states and italy have more. tough new restrictions have come into force, as the capital madrid held a moment of silence to remember those lost. guy hedgecoe reports. the new normal in spain. the country's once—buzzing capital is now a virtual ghost town. spain has been in lockdown

for over two weeks. but now that's been tightened further, as non—essential workers have been told to stay at home. the spread of the virus through care homes has been one reason why the death rate in spain has been so high. the vast majority of spaniards have been complying with the terms of the national lockdown, but the government hopes that these new reinforced measures will help bring the virus under control and that that in turn will take the pressure off a health care service which is under enormous strain. an all—too—common sight — ambulance after ambulance speeding through the streets. over 12,000 health care workers have contracted the virus and many feel they lack the protection they need, even at this critical stage. translation: it's frightening when your suit rips or when somebody‘s saliva gets on yourface. that's when you're most afraid. the government says the measures it's been taking are starting to pay off.

we're seeing an improvement in the number of infected citizens, we're seeing an improvement in terms of the curve starting to show a different trend. i think it's a little bit unfair to pinpoint to spain being an exceptional case in what i see is a general case around the world. the lockdown has been a challenge for spaniards. a massive change of lifestyle for a society that loves to interact. all sing but, like so many across mainland europe, singing seems to be cathartic — almost the new way to get through it. these young women, who live opposite a hospital, keep their spirits up by cheering the health workers who have suddenly become national heroes. clapping

in india, the government imposed a strict lockdown across the country at four hours notice — to stop the spread of coronavirus. it meant hundreds of thousands of people lost theirjobs and are now struggling for food. divya arya reports from delhi. panic and chaos. these people, who have moved across this vast country for work, demand they be allowed to go home. a complete lockdown has meant they have no work and no money. in the country's capital, delhi, the desperate head for their far—away villages on foot. journeys so gruelling some won't make it home. at least six people have died en route. 0thers scramble onto buses, trying to get out however they can. to curb the movement of people, borders are sealed overnight. but some, like rajit khan and his wife, insist they will march

to their village. translation: what can the government do? my son is sick. if they really cared, they wouldn't have stopped people from coming out or stopped transport. now, if he dies by the time we reach, who will take responsibility? now the prime minister has apologised to the people, asking them to stay where they are, promising food and shelter. i'm outside a food distribution centre being run by the government, and most of the people queueing up here are families of daily—wage labourers who are out of work right now because of the lockdown. some of them could not leave the city to go back to their villages, and some chose to stay. but now, stuck here, they say they're totally dependent on government aid. it is a long wait, and mothers complain there is no milk for their children.

translation: we are very worried. we have come here to get some food to eat. there are no jobs and money, our children are hungry. the ruling party admits it's a huge challenge. in a population of 1.3 billion, hundreds of millions of people are currently observing the lockdown, are currently being able to meet all the requirements that have been put in place. yes, a few million stand affected, but that's what is the effort on to eliminate that problem too. for many, that is a difficult wait, and as the lockdown tightens, they have an uphill journey ahead. divya arya, bbc news, delhi. dr krutika kuppalli is an infectious disease stay with us on bbc news. still to come, stolen during the coronavirus lockdown — burglars target a dutch museum and make off with a painting by van gogh. the accident that happened here was of the sort that can at worst produce a meltdown. in this case the precautions

worked, but they didn't work quite well enough to prevent some old fears about the safety features of these stations from resurfacing. the republic of ireland has become the first country in the world to ban smoking in the workplace. from today, anyone lighting up in offices, businesses, pubs and restaurants will face a heavy fine. the president was on his way out of the washington hilton hotel, where he had been addressing a trade union conference. the small crowd outside included his assailant. it has become a symbol of paris. 100 years ago, many parisians wished it had never been built. the eiffel tower's birthday is being marked by a re—enactment of the first ascent by gustave eiffel. this is bbc world news. the latest headlines:

a navy hospital ship has arrived in new york, as the state's governor launches a nationwide appeal for healthcare professionals in the struggle against coronavirus. dr krutika kuppalli is an infectious disease specialist and fellow at thejohns hopkins center for health security. thanks very much for that being with us. a couple of questions lots of people have been asking me and people have been wondering up and down the country, around the world really, things like this infection. we know it transfers when you get it on your hands and you touch your eyes, are people picking it up through surfaces?

evenif even if you get things

delivered, it isn't unreasonable to wipe down any items you get delivered with any kind of cleaning products. when you do that, the take—home message i tell anyone who asks me, regardless of wiping them down, it's important to wash your hands before you touch your hands before you touch your face because it's your hands that are going to infect you. if your hands are key, that's going to be the thing. 0n food specifically, some people who have it delivered, they are worried the virus could be on it. they don't want to wash it with soap and water, if they have left it for a couple of days, and then eat it, not touch it, is that safe? there haven't been any studies yet about how long it can last on food. i think the debate is

still out. the best advice on going to give anybody would be to wash it depending on what you're eating. we've heard you loud and clear, that's been really useful, krutika kuppalli. thanks. here in britain, an entirely new hospital, built in a conference centre in just a week, will be ready to take its first patients on wednesday. initially it's ready for 500 coronavirus patients, but eventually rising to 4,000. health editor hugh pym has the latest. just a week ago it was a giant conference hall, with room for a dozen football pitches. now it's a hospital, with intensive care beds and ventilators, and ready in a few days‘ time to receive the first patients. the capacity eventually will be 4,000. and if those beds are used, it'll be the biggest hospital in the world. sir simon stevens, head of nhs england, toured the site at london's excel centre today and met some of those who are making things happen.

today, there are over 9,000 positive coronavirus patients in hospitals across england. and we know that number is only going to increase. that's why what you see here is a mass mobilisation, taking place right across the country, but also at these new nightingale hospitals. this has been an extraordinary team effort on the part of nurses and doctors, therapists and pharmacists across london, but also volunteers, paramedics and people returning to help. the first staff were applauded in today, volunteers from other hospitals and recently retired doctors and nurses will be caring here for seriously ill covid—19 patients at what's now called the nightingale hospital. there were artic lorries here, last tuesday and wednesday when i was first here, and now we have it fully ready to take some patients. there is still a lot more work to be done. but huge progress, building a hospital in london, nightingale london, in just less than two weeks. it is unbelievable.

this is what the hospital could look like when nit‘s finished, with thousands of beds and with a mortuary. army staff are working with the nhs team to make it a reality. it is in the heart of london's docklands with businesses all around. the fact they've transformed this conference centre into a giant hospital so quickly shows how serious they think the pressure on the nhs could be. birmingham's national exhibition centre will house a nightingale hospital, so too the central convention centre in manchester. the sec in glasgow will also become a temporary hospital in two weeks‘ time, with space for up to 1,000 patients. the principality stadium in cardiff is set to be used as an nhs field hospital. and in belfast, a coronavirus assessment centre will open this week. there may be plenty of new hospital beds, but staffing is a problem with an estimate a quarter of doctors are off with a virus or because a member of their household is unwell.

i've been off work for a week now because my partner had a temperature last monday. so i self—isolated like you're supposed to do, but i've been feeling fine. i had a very mild cough last week, so i probably did catch it. and by the rules, had i been able to be tested soon enough, i could have proved that and gone back to work after a week of isolation. freelance health workers known as locums are frustrated because they feel they don't have adequate legal and financial protection. it is vital the government protect us and give us all the equipment. and that includes both sick pay and worker's protections, as well as the kit we need to be able to do ourjobs to the best of our ability. the lack of protective kit is still said to be a problem by some doctors, nurses and care workers. most are anxious about

what the next weeks will bring. they know this new hospital and many others could fill up quickly with very sick patients, some of whom will not survive their stay. hugh pym, bbc news at the nightingale hospital in london's docklands. engineers in the uk have developed a breathing aidm that could keep coronavirus patients out of intensive care. the device sends oxygen to the lungs without the need for a ventilator. it was created in just a few days, as medical correspondent fergus walsh reports. for the very sickest covid—19 patients, as in this intensive care unit in italy, a mechanical ventilator offers the best chance of survival. it takes over the job of breathing, giving the lungs a chance to recover. patients on ventilators need to be sedated and they require expert staff. the nhs has around 8,000 of them. it's planning to acquire another 8,000 from suppliers in the coming weeks.

but it's estimated up to 30,000 could be needed at the peak of any outbreak here. the government admitted a communication confusion after the uk failed tojoin an eu scheme to source extra ventilators. but denied that the nhs had been disadvantaged. by contrast, this new device has been approved. known as ‘continuous positive airway pressure' or cpap — they're already used in the nhs but are in short supply. so, a team at university college london working with mercedes formula 1 devised a new one. normally, medical device development would take years. in this instance, we've been able to do it in days. university college london hospital, which demonstrated the device, is now using it to treat patients with coronavirus. i sincerely think it may

actually save many lives by preventing patients from needing to go onto a ventilator, and again, saving that vital resource for the very, very severely ill. fergus walsh, bbc news. a painting by vincent van gogh has been stolen from an art gallery in the netherlands, as it was closed to visitors because of the coronavirus outbreak. the painting, valued at up to $6.5 million, was on loan to the singer laren near amsterdam. rich preston reports. this is where it happened, the singer laren museum just outside amsterdam, and this is what was taken. lentetuin was painted in 1884 and depicts the spring garden of the rectory at neunen, a town in the south of the netherlands where van gogh worked and lived for part of his life. experts value the painting at up to $6.5 million. translation: in 1884, he paints the vicarage garden in neunen — a very beautiful, tranqui spring garden where one woman is looking at

flowers very quietly. an image of silence, of reflection and of tranquillity, which undoubtedly offered him comfort and inspiration. through him, it gave us and our audience the same emotion. the painting was stolen early on monday morning on what would have been van gogh's 167th birthday. the thieves came in by breaking the glass door, and, well, at that point they got in and got through a few doors and took the painting. the museum's home to hundreds of valuable artworks, but the thieves seemed to have only one piece in mind. the singer laren museum, like others across the netherlands, has been closed since mid—march because of the coronavirus outbreak, but officials say security arrangements were not affected. detectives have appealed for anyone with any information to come forward. rich preston, bbc news.

that's it, get me on twitter. i'm @lvaughanjones. this is bbc news, goodbye. hello. in more ways than one, a lot has changed over the last week, none more so than in the weather, where we saw on tuesday last week the feel of late spring in the north coast of wales — 19 celsius, 63 fahrenheit achieved. a week later, well, we're lucky if we reach nine celsius in the same spot, even with some sunshine continuing. that colder theme continues through this coming 24 hours, but a little less chilly. high pressure's moved further west so the winds more westerly than northern, and notice the gaps in the isobars, starting to widen, indicating it won't be as windy as it has been. that said, a noticeable north—westerly breeze in parts of northern scotland bringing a few rain showers through the day. one or two rain showers in northern ireland and northern england but many will stay dry. a bit of sunshine coming and going through the day, the best of which will be in southern counties of england, east anglia and the channel islands.

sunnier than in recent days, and the breeze won't be as strong as it has been, it will probably feel that little bit less chilly. elsewhere, light winds, and that will continue through tuesday night into wednesday away from the far north of scotland. cloud amounts often large through the night. a few showers in the north and west again. where you see any cloud breaks, a bit of frost around, the greatest chance in clear skies in southern counties of england. this is where it'll be frostiest to begin wednesday morning. so, a chilly start here. that ridge of high pressure just in, but changes through the day in the north. the isobars tightening up again, coming closer, breeze picking up and that weather front set to bring some more significant rain — 0rkney and shetland in the morning, and then through the day, the northern half of scotland. away from that, a few showers, plenty of cloud around for the vast majority, and the sunshine will come out later in the north of scotland. while we could see temperatures peaking at ten, it will drop because cold air is on its way. this quite significant area of low pressure pushes from iceland towards norway, introducing gales

quite widely across the northern half of scotland, if not severe gales, and a shot of cold air to see the week out, pushing its way southwards. so, for thursday, cloudy to begin with in the south. a few more showers pushing through the day. brightening up in the north but showers turn wintry, sleet and snow quite abundantly, and temperatures in lower single figures. whereas we've still got temperatures potentially around 12 or 13 in the south—east corner. but the cold snap, thursday into friday, is short—lived. just notice by saturday and the weekend, milder air returns from the south.

this is bbc news, the headlines: a us navy hospital ship has docked in new york to help the city cope with coronavirus. the governor of new york state has described the scale of the crisis as staggering and warned it will spread nationwide. president trump says social distancing can save more than a million american lives. two virus—related deaths have now been recorded in syria. the health ministry has confirmed that a woman died from coronavirus on sunday after being taken to hospital. medics suspect there are many more cases. there are fears the virus will spread rapidly through vulnerable populations, overwhelming the fragile healthcare system. a three—week nationwide lockdown in india has left hundreds of thousands of informal labourers withoutjobs or wages, triggering an exodus to home villages. this has put huge pressure on the transport system. now on bbc news, hardtalk.