California Governor Gavin Newsom declared an emergency as he reported the state's first fatality from the COVID-19 illness — an elderly person who had taken a cruise to Mexico — while health officials in nearby Washington state said a 10th person had died there, AFP reported.

"The State of California is deploying every level of government to help identify cases and slow the spread of this coronavirus," Newsom told reporters.

"This emergency proclamation will help the state further prepare our communities and our health care system in the event it spreads more broadly."