FILE PHOTO: A man wearing a face mask walks in a deserted shopping area in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, February 2, 2020. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo

BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - The Chinese city of Nanchang, capital of Jiangxi province, will strictly monitor the entry and exit of residents from villages and residential compounds as it steps up its efforts to control the spread of a coronavirus outbreak.

The city, which has a population of 5 million people, said on its official Weibo social media account that each family should assign one member to go out once every two days, and that people running fevers must go to a medical facility.

Jiangxi province is separated from the virus epicenter of Hubei by the Yangtze river. It had reported 600 infections of the coronavirus by the end of Wednesday, with no fatalities.