COVID-19 EPICENTRE: WUHAN PARTIES AT WATER PARK

The Chinese city of Wuhan was once the epicentre of the COVID-19 virus that caused a worldwide pandemic and forced many countries to go into lockdown for weeks and even months on end.

This week, the city made headlines again as photos of a massive party at the Maya Water Park went viral. No social distancing took place and there were no masks in sight.

Social media users around the world had comments about the fact that the city was allowed to have social gatherings that big and without masks or social distancing.

Many believe that it is safe to do so since Wuhan has had no positive COVID-19 cases since the middle of May.

Others believe that the virus can always return, as seen in New Zealand.

Sanjaya Senanayake, an associate professor of infectious diseases at the Australian National University, told the BBC that while a majority of the city’s residents had been tested, there was still the risk of the virus being reintroduced.

"The problem is we haven’t eradicated COVID-19 and what that means is that as long as it’s not eradicated, there’s still the risk of having it introduced, whether from overseas or elsewhere."

The first case of COVID-19 was reported in Wuhan in 2019. The city of 11 million people was placed in lockdown between January and April for 76 days.

Watch the AFP video here to see how packed the party was.

Image credits: FOX10News and 6abcPhiladelphia