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176 Japanese on 1st evacuation flight leave hotel for home

A bus leaves a hotel in Katsuura in Chiba Prefecture, where people who have been evacuated from the central Chinese city of Wuhan have stayed in quarantine due to concerns of the deadly COVID-19 coronavirus, on February 13, 2020. (AFP)
A bus leaves a hotel in Katsuura in Chiba Prefecture, where people who have been evacuated from the central Chinese city of Wuhan have stayed in quarantine due to concerns of the deadly COVID-19 coronavirus, on February 13, 2020. (AFP)
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13 Feb 2020 01:02:12 GMT9
13 Feb 2020 01:02:12 GMT9

KATSUURA, Chiba Pref.,

Some 170 Japanese nationals who were staying at a hotel in Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, after returning home from Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak of a new coronavirus, late last month, have left the facility for home using buses prepared by the Japanese government or other means of transportation.

The 176 people returned to Japan from the Chinese city on Jan. 29 aboard the first of four flights chartered by the government for the evacuation of expatriates, and had stayed at Katsuura Hotel Mikazuki for about two weeks since then.

All of them showed negative results in second tests for the new virus conducted since Tuesday. Of them, 36 departed for home on Wednesday, and all other people left the hotel in the city of Katsuura on Thursday.

"All people concerned have worked together" to deal with the situation, Katsuura Mayor Hajime Tsuchiya told reporters on Thursday morning. "I'm relieved that none of our citizens was infected with the virus."

"We are very grateful to the Katsuura hotel, which accepted the government's urgent request for accommodating the returnees, nearby residents who warmly welcomed them, for example, by sending messages of encouragement, and relevant local governments" that offered cooperation, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press conference in Tokyo.

"We will consider necessary measures to ensure that the hotel and the city will not be hit by unfounded rumors," the top government spokesman said.

The government will start on Saturday to sterilize the hotel, which plans to resume normal operations next month.

The health ministry on Wednesday began second virus tests for Japanese nationals who came back from Wuhan on Jan. 30 aboard the second chartered flight, with the results seen becoming available on Thursday at the earliest.

The four chartered flights transported a total of 763 people to Japan, including Chinese members of the families of Japanese returnees. As of Wednesday, 12 of them had been confirmed to carry the new coronavirus, including three who have no symptoms.

JIJI Press

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