Tag: Wuhan

Director of Wuhan lab denies virus link

BEIJING, China (AFP) — The director of a maximum-security laboratory in China’s coronavirus ground-zero city of Wuhan has rejected claims that it could be the source of the outbreak, calling it “impossible”. Beijing has come under increasing pressure over transparency in its handling of the pandemic, with the US probing whether the virus actually originated in a virology institute with a high-security biosafety laboratory. Chinese scientists have said the virus likely jumped from an animal […]

China virus epicenter Wuhan raises death toll by 50%

  by Jing Xuan TENG Agence France Presse WUHAN, China (AFP) — China’s coronavirus ground-zero city of Wuhan on Friday admitted missteps in tallying its death toll as it abruptly raised the count by 50 percent following growing world doubts about Chinese transparency. The United States has led the charge in questioning China’s handling of the pandemic and how much information it has really shared with the international community since the virus emerged late last […]

Wuhan, the first China virus epicenter, eases travel restrictions after lockdown

  by Jing Xuan TENG Agence France Presse WUHAN, China (AFP) — The Chinese city of 11 million people that was Ground Zero for what became the global coronavirus pandemic partly reopened on Saturday after more than two months of almost total isolation. Wuhan was placed under lockdown in January with residents forbidden to leave, roadblocks ring-fencing the city’s outskirts and drastic restrictions on daily life. But the major transport and industrial hub has now […]

Wuhan lockdown bought health systems vital time: study

by Patrick GALEY PARIS, France (AFP) — The lockdown in the Chinese outbreak city of Wuhan brought the COVID-19 epidemic crashing to a halt, giving health systems crucial breathing room to deal with serious cases, new research showed Thursday. Chinese authorities ordered schools, universities and businesses shut following a cluster of COVID-19 cases in the transport hub in January, confining millions of people to their homes in a bid to contain the outbreak. The measures […]

Wuhan recovery gives rest of world hope: WHO

by Robin MILLARD GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization said Friday that the original epicenter in China of the coronavirus outbreak at last reporting no new cases gave hope to the rest of the world battling the pandemic. The city of Wuhan registered no new cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours — for the first time since reporting its first case in December in an outbreak that has gone on to infect more […]

China reports no new local virus cases for second day

BEIJING, China (AFP)— China on Friday reported no new local cases of the deadly coronavirus for a second straight day, but its progress against the disease was confronted by another increase in imported infections. The country’s drop in cases offers a ray of hope for the rest of the world as a slew of other nations go into lockdown in an effort to emulate China’s tactic against the disease. The number of deaths in China has […]

Virus whistleblower doctor punished ‘inappropriately’: Chinese probe

BEIJING, China (AFP) — Police in China’s virus epicenter Wuhan acted “inappropriately” by punishing a doctor who blew the whistle on the outbreak that has now killed more than 9,000 worldwide, a Chinese government investigation found Thursday. Li Wenliang, one of a group of doctors in Wuhan who shared posts on social media warning of a SARS-like virus spreading in the city in December, was reprimanded by police for sharing the information and made to […]

Virus-hit Wuhan waits for barriers to come down

WUHAN, China (AFP) — A network of makeshift barriers has kept residents walled in their neighborhoods for weeks in Wuhan, the Chinese city at the heart of the coronavirus pandemic. The city of 11 million, where the virus first erupted, became a ghost town after authorities prevented people from leaving on January 23. With thousands of patients swarming hospitals every week, authorities tightened the restrictions in early February, confining people to their homes. Closing off […]

China, US spar over origin of coronavirus

  by Jing Xuan TENG Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — A Chinese government campaign to cast doubt on the origin of the coronavirus pandemic is fuelling a row with the United States, with a Beijing official promoting conspiracy theories and Washington calling it the “Wuhan virus”. The spat comes as China tries to deflect blame for the contagion and reframe itself as a country that took decisive steps to buy the world time […]

China to allow some firms to return to work in Wuhan

BEIJING, China (AFP) — Some companies in Wuhan, the Chinese city where the new coronavirus outbreak emerged late last year, are to be allowed to return to work, provincial officials said Wednesday. Businesses involved in providing daily necessities can resume work and production immediately, as can those that are key to “global industrial chains” after getting approval, said the Hubei provincial government. Other companies are expected to resume production only after March 20. Similar rules […]

China’s Xi pays first visit to virus epicentre Wuhan

  by Noel CELIS / and Laurie Chen in Beijing Agence France Presse WUHAN, China (AFP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Wuhan Tuesday for the first time since the city emerged as the epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic in January — a major sign that officials believe the outbreak is under control. Xi’s visit came as unprecedented quarantine measures that have sealed off Wuhan and the rest of central Hubei province since late January […]

More than 27,500 persons infected with COVID-19 recover, as total cases hit more than 80,000

  (Eagle News) — Total confirmed cases of the highly contagious coronavirus disease (COVID-19) worldwide has now reached 80,146 with the number of deaths almost 2,700. As the cases increased, more persons who contracted the disease recovered with the latest number at 27,563 as of Tuesday, Feb. 25, according to the live virus dashboard of the John Hopkins University (JHU) monitoring the COVID-19 cases. The most number of cases is still in mainland China at […]