Beijing
Millions of people in China were returning to work Monday after an extended holiday designed to slow the spread of a virus that has already killed more than 900 people. At least 40,000 others have been infected by 2019-nCoV, which is believed to have emerged late last year in a market in Wuhan.
And although the World Health Organisation has said there are tentative signs the epidemic is stabilising, the agency’s chief warned there may be more infections abroad in people who have never travelled to China.
The comments from Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus came as a team of WHO experts departed for China, led by Bruce Aylward, a veteran of previous health emergencies. In an attempt to contain the virus, cities in Hubei have been locked down and transport links countrywide were cut to stop the movement of hundreds of millions of people who usually visit family during the annual Lunar New Year holiday.
Officially the Lunar New Year holiday was extended by only three days, but many cities and provinces pushed the deadline until February 10. The unprecedented measures have turned cities into ghost towns, with people staying inside.— AFP
