WUHAN (AFP): China locked down two major cities in a province at the centre of a deadly virus outbreak on Thursday (Jan 23), banning planes and trains from leaving in an unprecedented move aimed at containing the disease which has already spread to other countries
The respiratory virus has claimed 17 lives since emerging from a seafood and animal market in Wuhan, infected hundreds of other people nationwide and been detected as far away as the United States.
Hours later, authorities in neighbouring Huanggang announced that public transport and train services would be suspended at midnight, while people were told to not leave the city of 7.5 million.A third city, 1.1 million-population Ezhou, announced the train station had been temporarily closed earlier in the day.
The coronavirus has caused alarm because of its similarity to Sars , which killed nearly 650 people across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.The first case of the new virus was confirmed on Dec 31, and it has since been detected in Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and the United States.
The emergency committee will meet again later, after its chair, Didier Houssin, said the experts were split over declaring a public health emergency. Wuhan's special anti-virus command centre said the quarantine measures were meant to"effectively cut off the virus spread, resolutely curb the outbreak and guarantee the people's health and safety," according to state media.The city's tourism and culture department cancelled all group tours until Feb 8, according to state media.
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