LOCKDOWN IN CHINA AVERTED 700,000 CASES
BEIJING: Nearly 700,000 Covid-19 cases in China were averted because of the unprecedented lockdown of Hubei province, a new study estimated. The lockdown in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, was aided by measures like shutting down such as intra-city transport.
BEIJING: Nearly 700,000 Covid-19 cases in China were averted because of the unprecedented lockdown of Hubei province, a new global study estimated.
The lockdown in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, was aided by national emergency measures like shutting down of intra-city public transport, closing of entertainment venues and banning of public gatherings.
Hundreds of thousands of Covid-19 cases were avoided because of the measures despite 4.3 million travelling out of Wuhan between January 11 and January 23, the day the lockdown was announced, possibly ushering in the largest quarantine measure in history.
The study titled The Impact of Transmission Control Measures in the first 50 Days of the Epidemic was compiled by a team of more than 20 scientists from institutes in China, the US and the UK.
It analysed past and current travel data and information related to the infection numbers to come to the conclusion.
“As there is currently neither a vaccine nor a specific drug treatment for Covid-19, a range of public health (non-pharmaceutical) interventions has been used to control the outbreak. In an attempt to prevent further dispersal of Covid-19 from its source, all transport was prohibited in and out of Wuhan city on January 23, 2020, followed by the whole of Hubei province a day later,” the study said.