A woman wearing a face mask looks at a shopping window as the country is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, in Beijing’s central business district, China February 16, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s Hubei province, the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic, reported 1,933 new cases and 100 new deaths on Feb. 16, the local health authority said on Monday.
The number of new cases rose nearly 5% from the previous day, but the number of deaths fell from 139 on Saturday. Nearly 90% of the new cases were in the provincial capital of Wuhan, where the virus is believed to have originated.
The Hubei health commission said the total number of cases in the province had reached 58,182 by the end of Sunday, with 1,696 deaths. Wuhan has accounted for 71% of the province’s total cases and 77% of deaths.
The province has been accused of failing to tackle the outbreak early enough, allowing it to spread. The Communist Party bosses of both Hubei and Wuhan have been dismissed.
Hubei announced tough new measures to try to curb the epidemic on Sunday, ordering its cities to block roads to all private vehicles and telling villages and urban residential districts to strictly control the movement of people.
Reporting by David Stanway; Editing by Dan Grebler