Coronavirus: 76 Indians, 36 foreigners evacuated from China's Wuhan
An Indian Air Force aircraft on Thursday evacuated 112 people from the Chinese city of Wuhan, which is the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. The flight, which included 76 Indian nationals, had flown to Wuhan to provide medical supplies to China and evacuated people on its return journey. Mere hours before, 119 Indians were evacuated from an affected cruise quarantined off the Japanese coast.
IAF's C-17 Globemaster landed in Delhi at 6:45 am
The IAF's C-17 Globemaster aircraft evacuated 76 Indians and 36 nationals from seven other nations—Bangladesh, Myanmar, Maldives, China, South Africa, USA, and Madagascar. The flight landed in Delhi at 6:45 am on Thursday. The evacuees will now face a 14-day mandatory quarantine at the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp in Chhawla, Delhi. They underwent thermal screening before being sent to quarantine.
MEA thanks IAF, China, and Indian Embassy in Beijing
Minister of External Affairs Dr. S Jaishankar thanked Chinese authorities for facilitating the evacuation and also appreciated the IAF and the Indian embassy in China. Earlier on Wednesday, the MEA had said that the IAF consignment carried 15 tonnes of medical relief supplies to help China in its difficult time. He said the consignment marked India's "strong expression of solidarity" with China.
119 Indians, 5 foreigners evacuated from Diamond Princess cruise
Earlier Thursday morning, an Air India flight evacuated 119 Indians and five foreigners from Sri Lanka, Nepal, South Africa, and Peru, from the cruise Diamond Princess. The cruise was quarantined near Japan's Yokohama port in January after a former passenger tested positive for coronavirus. Reportedly, 138 Indians were aboard the cruise. 16 tested positive for the infection and will remain in Japan for treatment.
What is the coronavirus outbreak?
The current viral outbreak involves a new strain of coronavirus, called SARS-CoV-2. The virus was first detected in China's Wuhan mid-December and has since spread to at least 30 other countries. The disease caused by the virus, called COVID-19, impacts a host's respiratory system and causes flu-like symptoms. The disease has killed 2,801 people (mostly in mainland China) and sickened over 82,000 globally.
