Coronavirus China Update: Hubei To Lift Lockdown, Tourist Attractions Reopen

China’s health officials on Tuesday announced that it will lift the months-long lockdown at Hubei province Wednesday where the COVID-19 pandemic was first reported in December.

The easing of restrictions comes after the Hubei province reported the number of new infections dropping to zero as on March 19. The province of 60 million was put on lockdown on Jan. 23 in order to fight the spread of coronavirus that spun out of control.

The city of Wuhan will lift the mass quarantine restrictions and will resume transportation facilities effectively from April 8. Wuhan’s public transportation authorities have already started disinfecting all public transports including buses parked at bus stations, metro stations, and subway train stations.

Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan on Monday asked all medical institutions to restore medical services for non-COVID-19 patients while continuing efforts to fight against the coronavirus.

A total of 115 A-level tourist attractions in the central Hubei province were reopened to the public by Monday afternoon with strict epidemic prevention and control measures.

Wuhan, which is the capital of the province and the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, on Wednesday, will also remove all restrictions on people traveling in and out of the province. This is applicable only for individuals who register to a health code rating system, the authorities said.

The health code rating system, introduced throughout the country in February, assigns residents with multi-colored QR codes that determine their current quarantine status, and also status on their permits to enter onto trains, expressways, shops, and office buildings.

Following five straight days of no new cases being reported within the Wuhan city, the nation’s health authorities confirmed that the new cases being reported in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangdong were passengers who came in from abroad.

Even though China’s President Xi Jinping has shown confidence over the country’s recovery, the virus seems to be accelerating its spread globally.