Virus silences Lunar New Year festivity in China
Beijing, Monday
A woman praying alone in front of shut temple gates was one of the only signs of Lunar New Year observances at Beijing’s Lama Temple on Saturday, as fears over a deadly new virus mount in China.
The popular Tibetan Buddhist temple, which had more than 80,000 visitors during the holiday last year, is usually packed with crowds queuing to burn incense for good luck.
The epicentre of the SARS-like virus is in central China, but it has spread to other regions, prompting authorities as far as the nation’s northern capital to close tourist attractions and cancel public events to prevent further contagion from a disease that has killed dozens and infected more than 1,000.
The death toll from coronavirus has risen to 81, with almost 3,000 confirmed ill.
The national new year holiday has been extended by three days to Sunday, in an attempt to contain the spread.
The number of deaths in Hubei rose from 56 to 76, with five deaths elsewhere. Wuhan is in lockdown and several other cities have imposed travel bans.
At least 44 cases have been confirmed abroad, including in Thailand, the United States, and Australia. There have been no deaths outside China.
In Shanghai, the government has stopped businesses from returning to work until 10 February.
The ban applies to all companies apart from utilities, medical firms, medical suppliers, and supermarkets.
On Monday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province and centre of the outbreak.
Experts suspect many more people are infected, but actual figures are hard to ascertain due to a number of factors like some people being asymptomatic.
Meanwhile, the director-general of the World Health Organisation Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, is in Beijing to discuss the outbreak with the Chinese government and health experts.
WHO on Monday said the global risk from the deadly virus in China was “high”, admitting an error in its previous reports that said it was “moderate”.
The UN health body said in a situation report published late Sunday that the risk was “very high in China, high at the regional level and high at the global level.”
In a footnote, the WHO said there had been an “error” in previous communications published on Thursday, Friday and Saturday which “incorrectly” said the global risk was “moderate”.
Asked for more detail, WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib said only that it was “an error in the wording”. -Agencies
