China expands transport ban to 13 cities, 41 million people affected

Coronavirus has hit China amid its Lunar New Year holiday, typically marked by family gatherings.

China expands transport ban to 13 cities, 41 million people affected

Medical officers check passengers after a train journey at Hangzhou railway station. Pic/AFP

Beijing: China on Friday added four more cities to a transport ban around the epicentre of a deadly virus, restricting the movement of some 41 million people in 13 cities as authorities scramble to control the disease.

Officials in Xianning, Xiaogan, Enshi and Zhijiang cities — all located in central Hubei province where the virus first emerged said public transport services including buses and train stations would be closed. The cities are the latest in Hubei to impose travel restrictions over the previous 24 hours in a bid to curb the spread of the new coronavirus which has infected more than 800 people.

The virus first emerged from the city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, where a seafood and live animal market has been identified as the centre of the outbreak.

It has killed 26 people so far and has caused alarm because of its similarity to SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome).

SARS killed nearly 650 people across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003. Zhijiang, a city of 5,50,000 announced the closure of all businesses with exceptions like pharmacies, while Enshi, with a population of 8,00,000 has shut all entertainment venues.

26
Total no. of victims in China so far

Video of a woman eating bat goes viral

A cringe-inducing clip of a Chinese woman devouring a whole cooked bat has emerged on Twitter. What makes it a matter of concern is that bats are considered one of the primary vectors of the coronavirus that has affected China and other countries. According to the New York Post, the video was shot in China's Wuhan province at an unidentified restaurant. In the video, the woman can be seen biting through what appears to be a fruit bat.

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