Wuhan virus: Caught by surprise, residents rush to stock up on supplies

A worker sanitising the square in front of Wuhan's Hankou Railway Station, which was closed following the city's lockdown yesterday. Flights were cancelled, and subways and buses within Wuhan were suspended. Patients queueing up to seek treatment on
Patients queueing up to seek treatment on Wednesday at a hospital's fever clinic in Wuhan, in China's Hubei province. Local hospitals have been grappling with a spike in the number of patients, some of whom said they had to wait hours to see a doctor, while others were sent home due to a lack of beds. PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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BEIJING • Wuhan residents woke up yesterday morning to news that the authorities had ordered a ban on all travel out of the beleaguered city in a bid to contain a fast-spreading mystery virus that has killed at least 17 people and sickened hundreds more.

In a sudden midnight announcement, the Wuhan government said that it was putting the central Chinese city on lockdown, prohibiting its 11 million residents from leaving its borders.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on January 24, 2020, with the headline Wuhan virus: Caught by surprise, residents rush to stock up on supplies. Subscribe