China has reported no coronavirus deaths over the past day, in a sign the worst of the outbreak is over for the country, just as Wuhan, source of coronavirus, is due this week to lift the final restrictions after more than two and a half months of stringent lockdown.
The China National Health Commission said there were also no new locally transmitted infections in the original epicenter of the disease, in Hubei province, and across the mainland.
However, authorities reported 32 new coronavirus cases among citizens returning from abroad.
The commission said that 30 new cases of asymptomatic infections were being monitored, with a total of 1,033 such cases under medical observation.
So far, China has reported 81,740 coronavirus cases, including 3,331 deaths and 77,167 recovered patients. …
Meanwhile, Wuhan, the Chinese metropolis, is due this week to lift the final restrictions from midnight on Wednesday, (1600 GMT on Tuesday) traffic is set to return to normal.
Flights are also due to resume, cars will be able to leave the city again and people can travel by train, on condition that they are healthy and have had no recent contact with infected patients.
The resumption of normal life in the city of 11 million people has seen as an important signal for China that the worst of the crisis is over.
The novel strain of coronavirus jumped from an unknown animal species to the human population in Wuhan in December.
Of the more than 80,000 officially registered cases in China, 50,000 were in Wuhan alone.
The metropolis accounts for more than 2,500 of the country’s 3,300 listed COVID-19 deaths.
Observers believe that many cases have not been included in those numbers, however.
dpa/NAN
