China mourned the victims of the coronavirus outbreak by observing a three-minute silence, bringing the country to a hush.
A day of remembrance was announced on Saturday for the more than 3,300 people who died of Covid-19 in China.
People stood still country-wide for three minutes in tribute to the deceased at 10:00 local time (03:00 GMT).
Then cars, trains and ships echoed their horns, sirens of air raids rang as flags flew in half-mast.
Late last year, the first cases of coronavirus were detected in Wuhan, a Chinese town in Hubei province.
The virus has since crossed the world, infecting more than one million people and killing up to 60,000 in 181 countries.
All traffic lights in urban areas have turned red at 10:00 in Wuhan, the epicenter of China’s epidemic, ceasing traffic for three minutes.
The Chinese government has said that the event was an opportunity to pay respects to “martyrs,” a reference to the 14 medical staff who died fighting the virus.
They involve Li Wenliang, a Wuhan doctor who died of Covid-19 after being reprimanded by the authorities for attempting to alert others of the illness.
“I feel a lot of sorrow about our colleagues and patients who died,” a Chinese nurse who treated coronavirus patients told AFP news agency. “I hope they can rest well in heaven.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping and other government officials paid silent tribute in Beijing by wearing white flowers pinned at their heads.
Saturday’s commemorations coincide with the Qingming annual festival, when millions of Chinese families give tribute to their ancestors.
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