A travel lockdown in central China is to include 12 cities near the center of this outbreak, no penning in 35 million residents. This is in an effort to contain the dangerous virus. Creating these ew travel limits was an amazing step that is controlling the governments fear of this disease spreading. A single day after China restricted all travel from the center of this outbreak, a city of about 11 million , the capital of Hubei, and four nearby towns were announces to have public transportation banne. Chinese health officials have reported that there have been 26 deaths from this outbreak and 830 cases of it. Soon after that a travel lockdown was imposed with hundreds of flights being cancelled, leaving thousands stranded. 

Another case was announced in the United States. A woman in her 60’s living in chicago who recently traveled to Wuhan, China, the center of the outbreak. Reporters have been told that 63 patients in 22 states were under investigation for the coronavirus; 11 tested negative.

The Lunar New Year is the most important holiday in the traditional Chinese calendar, and celebrations start on the eve. Chinese were expected to travel home in order to help prepare for this holiday. At midnight, families would usually set off firecrackers and fireworks. These celebrations have been far less than usual due to traveling being restricted.Many will not celebrate this year due to these circumstances. Residents have said that they are facing food supply problems because many shops and small markets are closed.

Official case count was 26 in just 24 hours, but has now jumped to over 200. The majority of the deaths have been in central China, but 2 have been reported from outside of the outbreak. One patient died in Hebei Province, over 600 miles from the center of the outbreak. And the other in Heilongjiang, near the border with Russia, over 1,500 miles from the original outbreak. The youngest to pass from this outbreak was a 36 year old man. This disease has been detected in Nepal, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United States, all in travelers who have visited China. 

Experts are preparing for an outbreak that could last months. It is likely that thousands of people will be infected. This is all depending on the travel flow and the infection pattern over the holiday season.