Sri Lankans in China to be evacuated amid increase in coronavirus cases

At least 30 Sri Lankan students currently staying in Wuhan, the epicentre of the new coronavirus outbreak, would be evacuated from the city, according to the authorities on January 25. The Foreign Ministry of Sri Lanka said that instructions have been given to the students to protect themselves from the fast-spreading infection. According to the statement issued by the ministry, initially, there were around 85 Sri Lankan students in Hubei Province and most of them had returned to Sri Lanka for the holidays before the outbreak of Coronavirus. 

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Precautionary steps to evacuate students

The Embassy in consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Relations in Colombo and other agencies of Government are making preparations for the students and their family members numbering 30 to evacuate them in the event of necessity. China's capital, Beijing has announced that it will suspend buses that enter and exit the city to prevent further spread of the deadly virus, Coronavirus according to the state media reports on January 25.

The authorities have taken this decision in a bid to contain the new SARS-like virus that has killed dozens in the country. According to reports, "all passenger transport by road" that moves in and out of Beijing will be suspended from Sunday.

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Virus claims 56 lives, more than 2000 affected

The deadly virus has claimed 56 lives and affected more than 2000 people. 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.

Thirteen 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. 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 as many as 56 million people amid constant fears that transmission rate will accelerate due to increased travel during the Lunar New Year.

READ: China Says Virus Situation 'grave' As Lunar New Year Curtailed 

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(with inputs from agencies)