Hubei residents banned from leaving homes as province introduces tough new coronavirus curbs
- New controls on movements introduced after authorities pledge to step up efforts to stop spread of Covid-19
- Restrictions mean only one person in each household will be allowed outside to buy supplies every three days
Authorities in the Chinese province at the centre of the Covid-19 outbreak have announced tough new measures to try to halt the disease.
Residents in Wuhan and other cities in Hubei are effectively banned from leaving home under an extreme lockdown unveiled by the new provincial government on Sunday.
Local authorities across the province announced the new measures hours after a meeting chaired by new party chief Ying Yong.
The harsh restrictions, on top of numerous “wartime” measures already in place, were necessary to fix loopholes and combat the spread of the disease, said Ying.
According to mainland media reports, Ying, who also chairs the province’s prevention and control command, admitted at a meeting on Sunday afternoon that despite the tightened controls, Hubei still faces a grim, uphill battle with six cities having more than 1,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19.