Photo taken on Aug. 17, 2017 shows the Parrot Island Yangtze River Bridge in Wuhan City, Hubei Province (Photo: Xinhua)

 
China's transport ministry announced Thursday to suspend all road and waterway passenger inbound transport services into Wuhan following an early notice from the city authorities which requires to suspend all outbound public transportation, in an apparent escalated fight against the pneumonia outbreak that has claimed 17 lives.

All roads and waterways passenger transport services into Wuhan where the new coronavirus is originated from are suspended, the Ministry of Transport said on Thursday. 

It followed an earlier notice in which the city authorities decided to shut down all outbound ways of airports and railway stations from 10 a.m. Thursday and city buses, subways, ferries and long-distance coaches have also suspended.

The local government also asked residents not to leave the city without specific reasons. Residents in Wuhan are also required to wear masks in public places.  

The decision to suspend inbound and outbound public transportation services in Wuhan comes as the country is entering the peak travel season for the upcoming Spring Festival.  

Latest data showed that a total of 571 confirmed cases of pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus had been reported across the country by the end of Wednesday. The number is still rising as more regions reported new confirmed cases.  

The pneumonia outbreak had resulted in 17 deaths, all in Central China's Hubei Province. Among those, the youngest fatality was 48 years old while the eldest was 89. Most of them had a history of chronic diseases, according to the National Health Commission.

Many Wuhan residents turned to social media like WeChat and Twitter-like Sina Weibo to cheer each other up and said they would fight together against the coronavirus.

"I have to celebrate Spring Festival alone this year. But I stand with the decision of the government. I will take good care of myself and stay here until we knock the virus off," one of Sina Weibo users commented.

Many people in other parts of the country posted comments on Weibo to support the city and the government's effort to fight the virus. 

"We are together with you, Wuhan! Let's fight against the virus and win!" read a post on Weibo that got 940 million views as of press time.

Community workers could be seen reminding local residents to wear masks with loudspeakers on Wuhan streets on Thursday. Precaution notices are posted in many public spaces of the city.

China's face mask output now reaches more than 8 million a day as some suppliers have resumed production despite Spring Festival holidays. China's maximum capacity is 20 million units of masks a day. The nation has the confidence to ensure mask supply, Miao Wei, Minister of Industry and Information Technology said on Thursday during an inspection tour to mask enterprises in North China's Tianjin.