The coronavirus death toll has risen to 56 — up 13 from the last count — while 1,975 people are confirmed to be infected with the disease, Chinese state media says.

Key points: Carrie Lam has announced all official visits to mainland China have been cancelled

Carrie Lam has announced all official visits to mainland China have been cancelled An area home to at least 50 million people has been locked down to contain the crisis

An area home to at least 50 million people has been locked down to contain the crisis While Donald Trump has praised China's response, there is criticism locally

This follows increasingly stringent efforts within mainland China and Hong Kong to curtail the spread of the disease, which includes the ban of car use in the city of Wuhan, the outbreak's epicentre which has been placed into lockdown.

Hubei, the central Chinese province home to Wuhan, has also confirmed 323 new cases of the virus, while Shanghai and the province of Henan — neighbouring Hubei to the north — have confirmed one coronavirus-linked death each.

Hong Kong said it would close schools for two weeks.

'Grave situation' as disease spread accelerates: Xi

Hong Kong medical staff have placed people suspected of the disease into quarantine. ( Reuters )

China's biggest holiday, the Lunar New Year, is unfolding in the shadow of the worrying new coronavirus outbreak.

President Xi Jinping said on Saturday that the country was facing a "grave situation" and that the spread of the disease was accelerating.

Temples locked their doors, Beijing's Forbidden City, Shanghai Disneyland and other major tourist destinations closed, and people cancelled restaurant reservations ahead of the holiday, normally a time of family reunions, sightseeing trips and other festivities in the country of 1.4 billion people.

The outbreak began in Wuhan, in central China, and has now spread nationwide and overseas, fuelled by millions of people traveling for the holiday.

Australian health authorities have confirmed four cases of the highly infectious virus in Sydney and Melbourne.

China cut off trains, planes and other links to Wuhan on Wednesday, as well as public transportation within the city, and has steadily expanded a lockdown to 16 surrounding cities with a combined population of more than 50 million, greater than that of New York, London, Paris and Moscow combined.

Extraordinary measures in Wuhan

Wuhan went one step further on Saturday, announcing the use of vehicles, including private cars, would be banned in downtown areas from midnight, state media reported.

Only vehicles authorised to carry supplies and for other needs would be permitted after that, the reports said.

Wuhan will assign 6,000 taxis to different areas, under the management of local resident committees, to help people get around if they need to, the state-owned English-language China Daily newspaper said.

Chinese paramilitary police stand guard outside the closed Hankou Railway Station in Wuhan. ( AP: Chinatopix )

The latest infection tally, from 29 provinces and cities across China, included 237 patients in serious condition. Of the 56 deaths, 39 have been in Hubei province, where Wuhan is the capital city.

The new virus comes from a large family of what are known as coronaviruses, some causing nothing worse than a cold.

It causes cold and flu-like symptoms, including cough and fever and, in more severe case, shortness of breath.

It can worsen to pneumonia, which can be fatal.

Most of the deaths have been older patients, though a 36-year-old man in Hubei died earlier this week.

Health authorities in the city of Hechi in Guangxi province said a two-year-old girl from Wuhan had been diagnosed with the illness after arriving in the city.

Urgent hospital construction, appeal for resources

The National Health Commission said it was bringing in medical teams from outside Hubei to help handle the outbreak, a day after videos circulating online showed throngs of frantic people in masks lined up for examinations and complaints that family members had been turned away at hospitals that were at capacity.

At least eight hospitals in Wuhan issued public calls for donations of masks, goggles, gowns and other protective medical gear, according to notices online.

A medical worker attends to a patient in the intensive care unit at Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University. ( Xinhua: Xiong Qi )

While China has called for transparency in managing the crisis, after the cover-up of the 2002/2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak, officials in Wuhan have been criticised over their handling of the current outbreak.

In rare show of public dissent, a senior journalist at a Hubei provincial newspaper run by the ruling Communist Party on Friday called for a "immediate" change of leadership in Wuhan on the Twitter-like Weibo. The post was later removed.

State media reported that Wuhan authorities had ordered the construction of a second dedicated hospital to treat patients suffering from the virus.

The hospital, designed to have 1,300 beds, is scheduled for completion in just two weeks.

Construction has started on the first dedicated hospital, which is due to be finished by February 3.

The Chinese military dispatched 450 medical staff, some with experience in past outbreaks including SARS and Ebola, who arrived in Wuhan late on Friday night to help treat the many patients hospitalised with viral pneumonia, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

Two purpose-built hospitals are among the extraordinary measures being taken to address the crisis. ( AP: Chinatopix )

The Ministry of Commerce is coordinating an effort to supply more than 2 million masks and other products from elsewhere in the country, Xinhua said.

On Friday, US President Donald Trump praised China's handling of the coronavirus on Twitter.

"China has been working very hard to contain the coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well. In particular, on behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi!" Mr Trump wrote.

Virus emergency in Hong Kong

Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam on Saturday declared a virus emergency in the semi-autonomous territory, announcing that flights and high speed rail trips between Hong Kong and Wuhan would be halted.

Ms Lam said all official visits to the mainland and official Lunar New Year celebrations would be scrapped immediately.

But she rejected calls for a temporary ban on all arrivals from the mainland and said it would be impractical to shut down all border crossings with the mainland.

Health surveillance officers use a temperature scanner to monitor passengers arriving at Hong Kong International Airport. ( AP: Vincent Yu )

Schools that are currently on Lunar New Year holidays will remain closed until February 17 and education authorities have asked universities to extend leave for students.

A marathon that was expected to draw 70,000 participants on February 9 was cancelled, the South China Morning Post newspaper reported.

Ms Lam also said she had sought assistance from China's State Council to ensure there were adequate supplies of masks.



The embattled leader is dealing with the health issue as she faces broader tensions after seven months of sometimes violent anti-government protests.

"I hereby urge all citizens stay united to fight against the epidemic to protect all Hong Kong people's health and safety," Ms Lam said.

Hong Kong's health authorities have confirmed five coronavirus cases, all linked to Wuhan, with a further 122 people being treated as suspected of having the disease.

Elsewhere, Canada has confirmed its first case of the virus in Toronto, after a man developed symptoms of respiratory illness after arriving from Wuhan.

Officials said the man, aged in his 50s, had flown from Wuhan to Guangzhou, landing in Toronto on January 23.

This follows the confirmation of four cases in Thailand and Australia respectively; three cases each in Europe and Malaysia; and two each for Japan, South Korea and the US.

French automotive group PSA, which has marques including Peugeot and Citroën, said it would repatriate 38 people, all expatriate staff and their families, from the Wuhan area.

The US is staging a similar evacuation on Sunday (local time) for all 230 citizens and diplomats located in Wuhan.

ABC/wires