China's Transport Ministry ordered on Thursday the suspension of all passenger buses and ferries going to the city of Wuhan in light of a deadly coronavirus outbreak there, saying that those already on their way must immediately turn back
BEIJING (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd January, 2020) China's Transport Ministry ordered on Thursday the suspension of all passenger buses and ferries going to the city of Wuhan in light of a deadly coronavirus outbreak there, saying that those already on their way must immediately turn back.
"All city transport authorities and services must immediately notify all bus passenger stations, ferry terminals as well as bus and ferry passenger transport operators that all bus and ferry routes are temporarily suspended," the ministry said.
Transports already on their way to Wuhan must immediately return to their points of departure, and passengers will be able to return purchased tickets without paying additional fees, the ministry added.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has recommended foreign journalists who have left for Wuhan to cover the news about the coronavirus outbreak to follow the instructions of local authorities and take care of their health.
"We understand that foreign journalists are closely monitoring the outbreak in Wuhan, some of them have already traveled to Wuhan. We recommend them to follow the local legislature ... take care of themselves, and practice hygiene to prevent infection," ministerial spokesman Geng Shuang said at a briefing.
He expressed hope that foreign journalists would be able to understand the situation and the measures taken by the authorities of Wuhan.
The unknown type of pneumonia was first detected in Wuhan in late December. Chinese experts later tentatively determined that this was a new strain of coronavirus, currently being labeled as 2019-nCoV or Novel Coronavirus.
As of earlier in the day, there over 600 confirmed cases in China, and 17 recorded deaths. Confirmed cases have also been recorded in the United States, Japan, South Korea and Thailand.
Precautionary measures have been taken in both Wuhan, which has banned local residents from leaving the city, and airports across the world.
