China: Authorities to restrict car traffic in Wuhan from Sunday

The outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus (nCOV) has caused widespread alarm and panic across the world. With its epicentre in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the virus has slowly spread across the globe with cases being reported in the US, Europe (in France), Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam. 13 cities, in an effort to contain the virus, have issued a travel ban and now officials have reported that Wuhan, which is widely considered as the epicentre of the virus, will be restricting car traffic from Sunday.

Several cities already in lockdown

As of Saturday, Chinese officials have placed a ban on 13 cities, out of which 12 are in Hubei Province. The ban has also restricted the travel of many as 56 million people amid constant fears that transmission rate will accelerate due to increased travel during the Lunar New Year.  

Many people stayed home with temples, major tourist sites and movie theatres all shuttered as authorities sought to limit the spread of the virus. The virus has also spread outside China infecting people in Japan, Thailand, South Korea, United States, Australia, France, Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal and Vietnam.

Read: China Expands Travel Ban Amid Coronavirus Outbreak, 56 Million People Affected

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However, the global Health Agency WHO has said that it was too early to declare it a global health emergency. While speaking to an international media outlet, WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the organisation is not declaring it as public health emergency of international concern.  

In a bid to treat patients, the Chinese city has also started to build a hospital with space for 1,000 beds. According to the municipal authorities, the hospital will be erected on a 25,000-square-metre lot and is scheduled for completion by February 3. Meanwhile, Wuhan, the epicentre of a new virus, has designated seven hospitals to concentrate the infected patients.

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