Attilio Fontana, president of Lombardy, northern Italy, declared a self-isolation two weeks after an associate contracted nCoV.

"For the next two weeks, I will try to isolate myself to protect myself and the people around me," Fontana said in a Facebook video on the evening of February 26, while wearing a medical mask. "So if everyone sees me in this form for the next few days, don't be afraid, it's always me."

Fontana said he took this precaution after one of his close associates was found to be infected with the corona virus. The president of Lombardy then had to undergo an nCoV test, causing his regular press conference to be canceled.

The test results showed that Fontana was negative for nCoV, but he confirmed that he still followed the isolation procedure that Italian health authorities introduced to the entire population of Italy.

The president of Lombardy is elected by the people of the region in the form of universal suffrage for a 5-year term, having the power to promulgate the region's regulations and laws. The holder of this position may be assigned special administrative functions by the central government of Italy.

Italy is currently the fourth largest outbreak of Covid-19 in the world, with more than 370 people infected, mainly in the Lombardy and Veneto regions, where the outbreak is and is showing the strongest signs of spread. The country has recorded 12 deaths due to nCoV, most of whom are elderly or have underlying medical conditions. The latest patient in Italy is a 69-year-old man.

Italian authorities are trying to figure out the reason for the outbreak, but have yet to find the "Patient No. 0," the source of infection. In the north of the country, nCoV has spread more strongly, but no hospital has been specified.

The Covid-19 outbreak appeared in 46 countries and territories after the outbreak in Wuhan, China in December 2019. Worldwide, more than 82,000 people have been infected, 2,800 have died and nearly 33,000 have recovered.