The Wuhan Novel Coronavirus currently spreading through China is making international news, and ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing Technology Co. is doing its best to help.

The virus, a “novel” form of coronavirus, has claimed 56 lives in China so far, with 2,118 people official infected as of 9 p.m. EST Sunday. The spread of the virus prompted up to a 1.5% decline in stock market indexes Monday.

Didi has canceled service provision in a range of Chinese cities, including Beijing. But in Wuhan, the epicenter of virus, drivers are providing free transportation for medical workers. Didi is 20% owned by Uber Technologies Inc.

The company has deployed two special fleets of drivers dressed in protective uniforms with regularly disinfected vehicles to transport all hospital staff in Wuhan for free. The service is said to have been devised in consultation with local authorities and medical staff.

The company has also put at the disposal of local authorities and neighborhood committees a “community service fleet” supported by 1,336 ride-hailing volunteer drivers. Transportation services are currently suspended in Wuhan since the city, along with neighboring cities in Hubei Province, is under quarantine, but the special Didi service within the city has been given an exemption.

“Didi will continue to dedicate its best efforts to help curb the spread of 2019-nCoV [the formal name of the disease], while ensuring the health and safety of drivers and partners,” the company said in a statement Saturday. “Didi is deeply grateful to all the medical workers and driver-partners who join this fight on the frontline.”

In addition, the company has been distributing face masks and disinfectants to drivers across China as the virus continues to spread.

Although there are media reports that the number may be much larger, one decent source for accurate data is John Hopkins University. It offers a live heat map that is updated with data from the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, China CDC, China National Health Commission and Dingxiangyuan, a website said to aggregate data from Chinese government sources in “near real-time.”

Photo: Didi Chuxing