First group of returnees from Hubei is back in Beijing

Beijing welcomed on Wednesday the first batch of train passengers from Central China's Hubei province since the novel coronavirus pneumonia broke out.

Beijing authorities expect it will take another two weeks or so to bring most of the workers still in Hubei back to their jobs in the capital.

After high-speed trains G488 and G4838 arrived at Beijing West Railway Station, a total of around 800 passengers from cities including Huangshi, Xiaogan, Xiangyang and Shiyan in Hubei exited the station through a specified platform after having temperatures checked.

They were taken to their living quarters in Beijing by vehicles sent by the different district governments in the city before being quarantined at home for 14 days.

Those with no fixed abode will be sent to designated facilities for the two-week isolation period.

Hubei province announced on Tuesday that areas in the province other than Wuhan would restore outbound traffic beginning on Wednesday.

People need to show a health code－a digital certificate issued by health authorities－when leaving the province.

According to the central leading group for epidemic response under the State Council, the Beijing government has worked with Hubei and formulated plans to help Beijing residents stranded in the province return to the capital, Chen Bei, deputy secretary-general of the Beijing government, said at a news conference on Wednesday.

"To ensure safety and order, passengers returning to Beijing will be taken directly to their destinations," Chen said.

"Due to the increasing risk of imported cases, passengers should only choose chartered trains or drive themselves to avoid cross-infection with inbound travelers at airports."

Keke, an employee at an internet company in Beijing, boarded a train at Shiyan East Railway Station at 12:20 on Wednesday.

"I received a message on Monday night telling me to seek approval for my paperwork regarding returning to Beijing through a WeChat program," she said. "I filled in the information on Tuesday morning and received a call from Beijing that night providing me information about the chartered train."

She got up early on Wednesday morning and boarded the train directly, led by railway workers, after displaying her health code and ticket information.

"After temperature monitoring, all passengers were asked to sit apart from one another," she said. "The train attendants then delivered free lunches directly to our seats."