Wuhan banishes memory of outbreak

Wuhan – Barriers still enclose Wuhan’s notorious seafood market – one of the few immediate reminders the city was once the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic that has transformed the world.

Otherwise, the new normal in the central Chinese city of 11 million is much like the old reality; cars buzz down highways, sidewalks bustle with shoppers and public transport and parks are very busy.

Tomorrow, the city where Covid-19 was first detected in late 2019 marks one year since it was locked down to crush the outbreak.

It was the first – and one of the most severe – coronavirus quarantines in the world, with transport to and from the city sealed off on 23 January.

Seventy-six days of fear and panic followed before the virus scourge was brought under control.

Today, hospitals and pharmacies are empty of Covid-19 patients, the panic-slicked days of last year banished.

The city has bounced back and is eager to move on from being known as ground zero of the deadly virus.

No official commemorations of Wuhan’s first lockdown are planned. –