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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 25 March 2020

China to lift lockdown in most of virus-hit Hubei province

By KEN MORITSUGU the world's second-largest 20 tables had "closed" signs
Associated Press economy and put money on them to help keep a dis-
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese in the pockets of workers, tance between customers,
authorities said Tuesday many of whom have gone while food delivery work-
they will end a two-month weeks without pay. It re- ers rushed in and out with
lockdown of most of coro- mained unclear, however, orders of grilled beef and
navirus-hit Hubei province which cities and provinces, lamb, noodles, pancakes
at midnight, as domestic including Beijing, the capi- and other northern Chinese
cases of what has become tal, would allow people dishes.
a global pandemic sub- from Hubei to enter their ju- Wu Lin, who works in cos-
side. risdictions. metics, was dining out for
People with a clean bill About 120,000 migrant the first time since restric-
of health will be allowed workers, including many tions were imposed be-
to leave, the provincial who had made the tradi- cause of the outbreak.
government said, easing tional trip home to Hubei "Since (the restaurant) can
restrictions on movement for Lunar New Year, have open at the moment, I be- In this March 23, 2020 photo released by Xinhua News Agency,
that were unprecedented already been allowed to lieve their prevention and workers disinfect a subway train in preparation for the restoration
in scale. The city of Wuhan, leave in recent days on control is fairly good," Wu of public transport in Wuhan, in central China's Hubei province.
where the virus was first de- special buses and trains, said. Associated Press
tected in December, is to according to Chinese me- "For example, they check abroad, with almost all among which 74 were im-
remain locked down until dia reports. The reports the temperature of every new cases being record- ported. Starting Wednes-
April 8. said manufacturing cen- customer and staffer. It ed among people arriv- day, Beijing will require ev-
China barred people from ters such as Guangdong gives us a sense of safety." ing from overseas. China's eryone coming from over-
leaving or entering Wu- and Zhejiang province are Officials have turned their National Health Commis- seas to be tested for the
han beginning Jan. 23 in open to people from Hu- attention to the threat sion on Tuesday reported coronavirus on top of being
a surprise middle-of-the- bei, of the virus entering from 78 new coronavirus cases, quarantined for 14 days. q
night announcement and Outside of Hubei, the gov-
expanded that to most of ernment says work has re-
the province in succeeding started on about 90% of
days. Trains and flights were major public construction
canceled and checkpoints projects across the coun-
set up on roads into the try. While many migrant
central province. workers remain trapped by
The drastic steps came travel restrictions and quar-
as the coronavirus began antines, factories are oper-
spreading to the rest of ating again, though not at
China and overseas during full capacity.
the Lunar New Year holi- In the Beijing area, the city
day, when millions of Chi- zoo and parts of the Great
nese travel. Wall reopened this week,
The virus raged for weeks in though they required ad-
Wuhan, the provincial cap- vance reservations to limit
ital, and surrounding cities. the number of visitors.
Hospitals overflowed, and Some restaurants were re-
temporary ones were hast- opening for business, some
ily set up to try to isolate on the condition that cus-
the growing number of in- tomers do not sit facing
fected patients. More than each other.
2,500 people have died in At the Xibei restaurant in-
Wuhan out of 3,270 nation- side a mall in eastern Bei-
wide. jing's Shuangjing neigh-
The outbreak has since borhood, a line formed at
been brought under con- around 11 a.m. Tuesday
trol, and Hubei has seen al- for the lunch opening, al-
most no new infections for though managers said
more than a week. they expected to serve
The move to end the lock- only around 140 customers,
down showed the authori- down from the usual daily
ties' apparent faith in the number of 900 before the
success of the drastic mea- virus outbreak.
sures as they try to kick start Half of the establishment's