Black Country expat's view from inside Wuhan gripped by coronavirus

Dionne Rayner, known as Dee, has been trapped in China where several major cities have been put on lockdown and most flights suspended in a bid to contain the virus.

She is originally from Stourbridge but now lives in Wuhan, where the virus which has so far killed 170 people and infected thousands more originated.

The 25-year-old travelled to her boyfriend's home town of Tanghe, north of Wuhan, before the city was put into lockdown and public transport suspended, meaning she is unable to return to her home city, let alone leave the country.

However, she says she has no desire to leave as it is now her life, despite pleas from her mother back in the UK.

The English language teacher, who has lived in China for two years, told how she had been caught up in the chaos and sense of panic, with people scared to leave their homes and shoppers being scanned by officials in hazmat suits as they enter supermarkets, malls or any places where large amounts of people are gathered.

Her story evokes images of some dystopian movie but for her this is real life.

Dee said: "People are panic buying supplies of food. Rumours and fake news are in abundance, including tales of curfews, disinfectant being sprayed over cities from planes and videos of people pretending to collapse and die in the streets and hospitals for views.

"The city of Jingzhou is also now quarantined, raising the number of people in quarantined cities to 35 million. Entering any place where a lot of people may gather, your temperature will be scanned and your details taken down.

"When venturing into a mall to buy food, my temperature was taken by a doctor in a hazmat suit. There are signs everywhere explaining the situation and imploring people to stay at home.

"It has been confirmed that the virus can infect from human to human interaction. Countries like France are attempting to get their citizens out of quarantined Wuhan. The UK Government's advice? “Try to get out if you can.” Which, to be honest, is next to impossible in a quarantined city. But thanks for that one.

"For me, I am basically trapped in Tanghe with my boyfriend's family. Most of my friends in Wuhan haven’t seen the outside world for days. People are continuing, as you must, with lingering uncertainty. Nobody knows when the situation will begin to settle. I don’t know when I’ll be able to return to the city that has become my home."

Dee has been posting updates about the worsening situation on her blog. She said the first she heard about the coronavirus, which has so far spread to at least 15 countries, was on New Year's Eve as she travelled back to China from the UK.

She said at first "the problem didn't appear to be serious" and that there seemed "no real reason to panic".

However, the situation quickly escalated as the death toll grew and the Chinese Government took decisive action to try and stop the virus spreading.

Dee said by now there was a "constant air of mild panic" and that she was receiving regular calls from her mother "demanding I get on the next flight home".

She said she had refused as "my life is here" and that she was leaving Wuhan to visit her boyfriend's town five hours away.

She has so far not been able to return to Wuhan as the crisis continues to deepen.

The British Government is chartering flights for its citizens stuck in China, who will have to spend two weeks at a hospital on Merseyside in quarantine on their return.

Dee told how friends had ignored the lockdown and fled Wuhan by paying for taxis to escape through back roads.

The isolation of the city was announced the day after Dee left with her boyfriend.

And she said: "The news hits where I am, and the panic really ensures now. The Spring Festival in China means a mass migration of millions of people travelling all over the country to visit their relatives. The worst possible time for an epidemic to begin. This is more serious than we could have imagined."