Scuffles have erupted between law enforcement officers and residents of Ukraine's Novy Sanzhary town in the Poltava region, as locals oppose the arrival of people evacuated from China's Wuhan, the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, media reported on Thursday
KIEV (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th February, 2020) Scuffles have erupted between law enforcement officers and residents of Ukraine's Novy Sanzhary town in the Poltava region, as locals oppose the arrival of people evacuated from China's Wuhan, the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, media reported on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, the Ukrainian authorities evacuated 73 people, both Ukrainians and foreigners, from China in connection with the coronavirus outbreak. They will be quarantined for at least 14 days at an Interior Ministry health center located in Novy Sanzhary.
According to the Nash broadcaster, the clashes occurred upon the local residents hearing the news that the Ukrainians evacuated from Wuhan were planned to arrive in the area.
The Ukrainian Interior Ministry said that an aircraft with 45 Ukrainians and 27 foreigners aboard had landed in Kiev for refueling and later in the day was expected to depart for Kharkiv. All the passengers were said to feel well.
The ministry also pledged to thwart any attempts to prevent the placement of the evacuated people at the health center in the Poltava region, adding that there is no threat for the residents to become infected with the virus.
Later in the day, the press service of the Poltava region police said that Novy Sanzhary residents had blocked the trans-regional highway to prevent the arrival of the evacuees.
"When police officers tried to unblock the road, some protesters showed resistance and a short clash occurred," the statement said.
The novel coronavirus, dubbed COVID-19 by the World Health Organization, was first detected in Wuhan, located in China's Hubei Province, in late December and has since spread to more than 25 countries. According to China's health authorities, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in mainland China has crossed 74,000, with over 2,100 patients having died.
