China's coronavirus-stricken province races to tackle shortage of protective gear

Central China's Hubei Province, hit hard by the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak, said it has distributed millions of masks and protective medical clothing to meet the needs of patients, medical staff and the public.

By 3:00pm Monday, Hubei had sent out 5.66 million masks and over 106,000 sets of protective medical clothing, according to the Hubei provincial department of economy and information technology. This protective gear has been provided through organizing companies to expand production and tapping into emergency supplies.

The department said it will continue to expand production to meet the needs of Wuhan and other cities in the province.

Meanwhile, medical aid from the central authorities and other provinces is pouring in. China has sent nearly 6,000 medical workers from across the country to Hubei Province in the fight against the novel coronavirus outbreak, Jiao Yahui, an official with the National Health Commission, said Tuesday.

By the end of Monday, 4,515 confirmed cases of pneumonia caused by the new virus had been reported in 30 provincial-level regions. A total of 106 people died of the disease, while 60 people had been discharged from hospital after recovering.

The National Health Commission said in its daily report that 976 patients remained in critical condition, and 6,973 people were suspected of being infected with the virus as of the end of Monday.

Wuhan, where the virus first broke out, is racing to build two field hospitals to accommodate patients. The two facilities are expected to be completed on Feb. 2 and Feb. 5.