Beijing to Suspend From Sunday Buses Entering or Leaving City to Contain Coronavirus: Report

Beijing: China's capital will suspend buses that enter and exit the city boundary, state media reported on Saturday, as Chinese authorities scramble to contain a new SARS-like virus that has killed dozens in the country.

According to state-run People's Daily, "all passenger transport by road" that crosses in and out of Beijing will be suspended starting Sunday, citing "requirements of epidemic prevention and control".

China will also suspend both domestic and overseas Chinese group tours, state media reported Saturday, in an effort to contain the Coronavirus. Starting Monday, all overseas group tour services, including hotel and plane ticket bookings, from Chinese travel agencies will be suspended.

China on Saturday announced plans to build a second hospital within half a month to treat more cases of the deadly coronavirus as the fast spreading virus continues to wreak havoc in the country and abroad with 41 people dead and more than 1,300 infected, dampening the Chinese New Year celebrations.

The confirmed cases for the first time crossed the 1,000 mark and rose sharply to 1,287 as of Friday with 237 people in critical condition battling for their lives in China, the National Health Commission said on Saturday.

Almost all provinces, including Beijing, are reporting steady rise in the number of cases mostly of people who travelled from Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.

The pneumonia situation had resulted in 41 deaths, including 39 in central China's Hubei province and one in north-eastern province Heilongjiang, the health commission said on Saturday. Additionally, a total of 1,965 suspected cases have also been reported, it said.

China on Saturday said it will build another 1,300 bed makeshift hospital in Wuhan in the next 15 days in addition to the 1,000 bed hospital being built in the city in 10 days, state-run People's Daily reported.

The feverish pace at which the hospitals are being built indicate that China apparently is preparing to treat far more patients considering the speed at which the virus is spreading.

The virus has spread to Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Nepal, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and the United States as of Thursday. Japan on Friday reported a second confirmed case.