France to Dispatch Charter Flight for Evacuation of Nationals Amid 'Wuhan Pneumonia' Outbreak

Plan to Evacuate Nationals Wishing to Withdraw from Wuhan to Paris

Amid the occurrence of the fourth confirmed case of the novel coronavirus infection known as 'Wuhan pneumonia' in Korea, visitors wearing masks are seen at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul on the afternoon of the 27th.

France has decided to send a charter flight to bring its citizens back from Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia).

With the permission of the Chinese government, France plans to operate a charter flight this week to directly bring French nationals wishing to leave Wuhan to Paris.

According to French media including Le Monde on the 27th (local time), the French government held an emergency meeting chaired by Prime Minister ?douard Philippe yesterday afternoon and made this decision.

Agnes Buzyn, Minister of Health, stated that the number of French nationals to be brought back by air from the Wuhan area is expected to be from several dozen to several hundred, and the French consulate on site is currently conducting a demand survey.

The French government plans to quarantine those brought back at a designated location for 14 days, the incubation period of the virus, then test for infection and conduct epidemiological investigations.

Currently, there are three confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection in France, the first in Europe.

Two of them are a 31-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus, who entered France on the 18th for travel and are currently receiving treatment at a hospital in Paris. The other is a 48-year-old Chinese-French resident of Bordeaux who had traveled to China and was briefly in Wuhan.

Minister Buzyn said that tests are currently underway for six other suspected cases, and results will be available soon. These six individuals had stayed in Wuhan before returning to France.

Meanwhile, the South Korean government is also reported to plan to dispatch a charter flight to Wuhan as early as the 30th.

The Korean Consulate General in Wuhan announced on the 27th via its website (http://overseas.mofa.go.kr/cn-wuhan-ko) that it will accept applications for boarding the charter flight by email until 11:55 PM that day.

Chinese nationals are not allowed to board even if they are family members of Korean nationals, according to Chinese government policy.

Also, those with suspected symptoms such as a fever above 37.5 degrees Celsius, vomiting, coughing, sore throat, or difficulty breathing cannot board and will be quarantined in Wuhan by the Chinese government.

It is estimated that about 600 Korean nationals are currently staying in Wuhan, including students, self-employed individuals, travelers, and business visitors.

According to the Korean community in Wuhan, more than 500 Korean nationals have expressed their intention to board the charter flight in the consulate's demand survey as of this day.

Since the 23rd, all flights and trains departing from Wuhan have been suspended, and highways and regular roads leading out of Wuhan have been closed, effectively locking down the city.

Due to the disruption in the supply of daily necessities, Korean nationals stranded in Wuhan are experiencing significant difficulties in their daily lives.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.