New York Guv declares State of Emergency as cases soar to 76

Governor of the US state of New York declared a State of Emergency on Saturday as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the northeastern state rose to 76.

At a press conference, Governor Andrew Cuomo said that New York City, the most populous metropolis in the country, has seen 11 cases, and Westchester County now has 57, an increase of 23 overnight, the Xinhua news agency reported.

Long Island's Nassau County has four, Rockland County has two and Saratoga County has two new cases.

All cases in Westchester County are related to the state's second confirmed case, which involves an attorney who worked in Manhattan.

"Westchester is an obvious problem for us," the Governor said. "They talk about the contagion in clusters and the clusters tend to infect more and more people."

However, Cuomo repeatedly urged the public to stay calm, noting that about 80 per cent of the COVID-19 patients will self-resolve and the overall health risk to New Yorkers are still low.