Posted on 01/23/2020 10:00:51 AM PST by Mariner
BEIJING - Major Chinese cities, including the capital of Beijing and virus-hit Wuhan, banned all large gatherings over the coming Lunar New Year festival, the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar, in an expanding effort contain the rapidly spreading outbreak.The announcement Thursday came as authorities expanded travel restrictions imposed on Wuhan to surrounding municipalities, shutting down travel networks and attempting to quarantine some 25 million people - more than the population of Florida.
The extreme measures were accompanied by other indications that Communist Party authorities were struggling to control the outbreak, notably the aggressive censorship of any criticism or skepticism on social media.But some outspoken doctors warned that the controls would not be enough to stop the spread of the pneumonia-like virus, which has now killed 17 people in Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province.
"A bigger outbreak is certain," said Guan Yi, a virologist who helped identify severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003. He estimated - "conservatively," he said - that this outbreak could be 10 times bigger than the SARS epidemic because that virus was transmitted by only a few "super spreaders" in a more defined part of the country."We have passed through the 'golden period' for prevention and control," he told Caixin magazine from self-imposed quarantine after visiting Wuhan. "What's more, we've got the holiday traffic rush and a dereliction of duty from certain officials."
The Lunar New Year holiday, a week-long period when millions of Chinese travel to their hometowns - the biggest human migration on the planet - officially begins on Friday.
Ahead of the holiday, authorities initially said that the virus, which began in a Wuhan food market selling exotic animals for consumption, was mild and could not be transmitted between humans.
(Excerpt) Read more at greenwichtime.com ...
And this little jewel: Incubation period up to 14 days.
The question that should be answered asap is: Is the virus persistent in the environment, can it withstand dry and cold surfaces for an extended period?
If so, there's big trouble afoot.
The good news is that it is only fatal to a fraction of the people that get it. Kinda like the flu.
Sort of explains how this is spreading around the world so fast.
I think I’ll watch 12 Monkeys tonight. :)
"No health authorities have identified Xu Dapeng, the founder of the oldest environmentalist NGO in China Friends of Nature, as a Wuhan virus carrier. According to RFA, the Chinese government confirmed his death on Wednesday, but attributed it to “pneumonia.” His wife, who RFA does not name, died of a similar illness ten days before Xu, which would place the date of her infection before China announced it had identified the virus.
Both died in Wuhan.
” Kinda like the flu.”
In the US the flu kills about 0.1% of those infected.
This virus, so far, is running about 2%.
It’s turning into a weaker form of SARS.
Yeah, but that’s not the US.
And since it’s NEW, nobody has any natural immunity.
So it’s not the Year of the Rat. It’s the Year of the Bat, possibly.
I think it’s higher than 2%.
The rumor mill that’s running throwing up some early Captain Trips level similarities. It’s currently impossible to confirm anything that is being said. I’ve seen videos and images of people in level 3 and 4 hazmat suits picking bodies.
Imperial College has cases at between 1000 and 9700 in Wuhan alone, and reports are coming out of bodies being cremated instead of tested.
I expect Hubei Province to be sealed by Sunday.
Those not yet quarantined probably suspect the same and are getting OUT by any means they can.
The actions of the government do not synch with their reported numbers.
The incongruity is striking. And it will cause panic.
The official news will indicate they never existed in the first place.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.