MONTREAL -- The federal government is ready to fly Canadian citizens out of Wuhan, China.
Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne announced Wednesday that the federal government has a plane that will bring Canadians out of the province in China at the centre of the coronavirus outbreak.
Champagne said that 160 people have asked for help leaving China, but China has yet to agree to allow those people to leave the country.
Health Minister Patty Hajdu says the government still has to decide what will happen with the Canadians who leave China, so as to prevent any spread of the illness.
Earlier on Wednesday, Quebec had said it was studying the possibility of repatriating Quebecers currently in China to help mitigate a possible coronavirus outbreak.
The Chinese government has cut off access to Wuhan and 16 other cities, as the virus has infected more than 6,000 people in the country.
EXPATS FRUSTRATED
Canadian expatriates expressed their frustration on Wednesday at being unable to reach the embassy or consulate in recent days, particularly as other countries began evacuations of its citizens.
Champagne said 250 Canadians have registered with Global Affairs Canada to say they are in Wuhan, and 160 of them have asked for help to be repatriated.
Canadians outside of the country are asked to voluntarily use the Registration of Canadians Abroad service to make their location known.
“I’ve registered three days ago. Still nothing,” Quebecer Isabelle Mathieu told a WeChat group of Canadians discussing the matter. “That’s all I got.” She also posted a “thank you for registering” form letter she received.
Mathieu is from Saint-Georges de Beauce near Quebec City and has been in China since the end of November. She lives in Chongqing, a municipality of more than 30 million people about 850 kilometres west of Wuhan, the Chinese city at the epicenter of the epidemic.
Chongqing is a megacity just went of Hubei, the province of which Wuhan is the capital.
“Even if I wanted to leave, I can’t. The visa centre (has) my passport for the residence permit application,” said Mathieu.
FLIGHTS CANCELLED TO CHINA
Meantime, Air Canada is cancelling all flights to China as travellers shaken by the epidemic postpone or abandon their travel plans. Canada's largest airline flies 33 times a week to China.
NO CASES IN QUEBEC
There are currently no cases of the new coronavirus in Quebec. Two people who were under observation earlier in the week have tested negative, as of the province's latest update on Monday at 3:30 p.m.
More people are likely to be investigated in the coming days and weeks for signs of coronavirus, the health ministry said on Monday.
The risk of travellers bringing in the 2019-nCoV virus to the province is currently considered "low, but cannot be completely excluded," the health ministry's website stated.
There are currently two confirmed cases in Ontario and one case in British Columbia that is still awaiting final confirmation from the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg.
If a case is confirmed in Quebec, the risk of disease transmission also remains low, the health ministry stated.
Quebec health professionals, including doctors, nurses, laboratory staff and paramedics, have access to tools to quickly identify a suspected case of the illness and to ensure it is adequately managed to prevent and control its spread, officials said.
The results for everyone tested for the virus in Quebec have come back negative.
A Quebec Health Ministry website is publishing the details of the number of people under observation.
- With a report by Solarina Ho of CTVNews.ca and a report by The Canadian Press
